Scatter Analysis of WISC-R Profiles for Learning Disabled Children with Superior Intelligence

Abstract

A group that has rarely been investigated empirically, learning disabled children with superior intelligence, was the focus of this study. The WISC-R profiles of 30 “uneven gifted” children were examined to assess strengths and deficits as well as scatter. The children exhibited extremely strong skills in verbal comprehension, expression, and conceptualization, in marked contrast to relative deficiencies in an area that has been defined variously as sequencing ability and distractibility. Verbal—Performance IQ discrepancies and subtest scatter were both significantly greater than values obtained for normal children and were also substantially greater than scatter indexes for LD children with normal intelligence. In addition to the characteristic profile of intellectual skills, the group of high-IQ LD youngsters also displayed a consistent “emotional” profile.

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