Intellectual Competence & the Death Penalty: July 2013

Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Article alert--Flynn on Flynn effect: Flynn's response in forthcoming special issue of Intelligence

Click on image of page 1 of article to enlarge

Structural and Incremental Validity of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Fourth Edition With a Clinical Sample [feedly]

Shared via feedly // published on PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT - Web of Knowledge // visit site

Title: Structural and Incremental Validity of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Fourth Edition With a Clinical Sample
Author(s): Nelson, Jason M.; Canivez, Gary L.; Watkins, Marley W.
Source: PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT, 25 (2): 618-630 JUN 2013
IDS#: 173DR. ISSN: 1040-3590

Further Insights on the French WISC-IV Factor Structure Through Bayesian Structural Equation Modeling [feedly]

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Title: Further Insights on the French WISC-IV Factor Structure Through Bayesian Structural Equation Modeling
Author(s): Golay, Philippe; Reverte, Isabelle; Rossier, Jerome; et al.
Source: PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT, 25 (2): 496-508 JUN 2013
IDS#: 173DR. ISSN: 1040-3590

Incremental Criterion Validity of WAIS-IV Factor Index Scores: Relationships With WIAT-II and WIAT-III Subtest and Composite Scores [feedly]

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Title: Incremental Criterion Validity of WAIS-IV Factor Index Scores: Relationships With WIAT-II and WIAT-III Subtest and Composite Scores
Author(s): Canivez, Gary L.
Source: PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT, 25 (2): 484-495 JUN 2013
IDS#: 173DR. ISSN: 1040-3590

An Alternative Cattell-Horn-Carroll (CHC) Factor Structure of the WAIS-IV: Age Invariance of an Alternative Model for Ages 70-90 [feedly]

Shared via feedly // published on PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT - Web of Knowledge // visit site

Title: An Alternative Cattell-Horn-Carroll (CHC) Factor Structure of the WAIS-IV: Age Invariance of an Alternative Model for Ages 70-90
Author(s): Niileksela, Christopher R.; Reynolds, Matthew R.; Kaufman, Alan S.
Source: PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT, 25 (2): 391-404 JUN 2013
IDS#: 173DR. ISSN: 1040-3590

Monday, July 29, 2013

Florida's Narrow Interpretation of Mental Competency Leads to New Date [feedly]

Shared via feedly // published on Death Penalty Information Center // visit site

Florida has set an August 5 execution date for John Ferguson, a death row inmate who has suffered from severe mental illness for more than four decades. As far back as 1965, Ferguson was found to experience visual hallucinations. He was sent to mental institutions and was diagnosed as paranoid schizophrenic, delusional, and aggressive. In 1975, a mental health doctor described Ferguson as "dangerous and cannot be released under any circumstances." Nevertheless, he was released less than a year later. Ferguson believes he is the "Prince of God" and is being executed so can save the world. Ferguson's attorneys recently filed a petition with the U.S. Supreme Court, asserting that Florida courts have applied the wrong standard for mental competency, ignoring the current interpretation of this issue by the High Court, which requires that an inmate have a rational understanding of why he is being executed. An earlier editorial in the Tampa Bay Times opposing Ferguson's execution, agreed, "Florida is embracing an interpretation of competency for execution so pinched that it would virtually extinguish limits on executing the severely mentally ill. The state says Ferguson is aware that he is being put to death and that he committed murder, and is therefore competent to be executed."

("Scott Sets New Date For Executing Mass Killer," Associated Press, July 24, 2013; Editorial Board, "State shouldn't execute severely mentally ill killer," Tampa Bay Times, November 2012; Read Ferguson's petition to U.S. Supreme Court). See Mental Illness and Arbitrariness. Listen to DPIC's podcast on Mental Illness.

Thursday, July 25, 2013

Only Inmate to Receive Federal Death Penalty in New York Again Sentenced to Death [feedly]

Shared via feedly // published on Death Penalty Information Center // visit site

On July 24, Ronell Wilson was re-sentenced to death by a federal jury in New York. Despite numerous capital prosecutions by the Department of Justice, no other person in the state has been given the death penalty since the federal death penalty was reinstated in 1988. New York's state death penalty law was found unconstitutional by the state Court of Appeals in 2004. By 2007, all seven of those sentenced to death under the state law had their sentences overturned. Wilson was first sentenced to death in 2007 for the murder of two undercover detectives in 2003, but the sentence was overturned in 2010. Wilson's lawyers argued that he suffered from mental retardation and was ineligible for capital punishment, but that motion was denied. His mother was an alcoholic and a drug addict. A judge is expected to formally sentence Wilson in the fall. There are currently 59 people on the federal death row, counting Wilson. No case in New York, state or federal, has resulted in an execution since 1963.

(M. Secret, "Killer of Two Undercover Detectives is Sent Back to Death Row," New York Times, July 24, 2013). See Federal Death Penalty.

Friday, July 19, 2013

Georgia Judge Finds State's Lethal Injection Secrecy Law Unconstitutional [feedly]

Shared via feedly // published on Death Penalty Information Center // visit site

On July 18, a Georgia Superior Court judge ruled that the state's new law shielding the source of lethal injection drugs interfered with Warren Hill's right to challenge his method of execution and is therefore unconstitutional. According to the law, information pertaining to drugs used in executions is classified as "confidential state secrets" and cannot be disclosed. Judge Gail S. Tusan (pictured), however, held that explicitly exempts from judicial review the very information that would be necessary for a court to determine the constitutionality of an inmate's execution." The court extended the stay of execution for Hill, who also has a petition before the U.S. Supreme Court regarding his mental retardation.

The state is likely to appeal Judge Tusan's order to the Georgia Supreme Court. Hill's death warrant expires on July 20.

(DPIC posted, July 19, 2013; read full text of Judge's order here). See Lethal Injection.

Thursday, July 18, 2013

Article: High court may be last hope for 'mentally retarded' man

High court may be last hope for 'mentally retarded' man
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/07/18/supreme-court-death-penalty-mental-retardation/2530127/

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"Towards Justice: Neuroscience and Affirmative Defenses at the ICC" [feedly]

Shared via feedly // published on Neuroethics & Law Blog // visit site

Recently Posted on SSRN (and forthcoming in the Studies in Law, Politics, and Society): "Towards Justice: Neuroscience and Affirmative Defenses at the ICC" ADAM B. SHNIDERMAN, University of California, Irvine - Department of Criminology, Law and Society CHARLES ANTHONY SMITH,...

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

With a new execution date set, must the Supreme Court now take up the Hill case from Georgia? [feedly]

Shared via feedly // published on Sentencing Law and Policy // visit site

The question in the title of this post is prompted in part by this local news that "State officials have rescheduled the execution of Georgia death row inmate Warren Lee Hill for Friday," and this interesting commentary up at MSNBC by LawProf Stephen Vladick, which makes these points about the case:

Hill is not an innocent man. His capital sentence arises from his 1990 killing of a fellow prisoner while serving a life sentence for the murder of his girlfriend. In a country in which 32 states (and the federal government) still allow capital punishment, Hill might seem an unlikely candidate to become anything other than a statistic....
But if Hill's execution is eventually carried out, it will set a very dangerous precedent — even for those who are not generally opposed to capital punishment. Hill is, by all accounts, mentally retarded (the pejorative term still in vogue in legal analysis). The Supreme Court held more than a decade ago that the execution of such defendants is a violation of the Eighth Amendment's ban on cruel and unusual punishment — because "there is a serious question as to whether either justification that [the Court has] recognized as a basis for the death penalty applies to mentally retarded offenders," and because "[m]entally retarded defendants may be less able to give meaningful assistance to their counsel and are typically poor witnesses, and their demeanor may create an unwarranted impression of lack of remorse for their crimes."...
The reasons why Hill is nevertheless facing lethal injection have been well-documented. Part of it is because Georgia makes it harder to prove mental retardation than any other state in the country (although Hill even meets Georgia's "beyond a reasonable doubt" standard). Part of it is because the government mental health professionals who examined Hill changed their mind — and their diagnosis — about Hill's mental capacity only after initially declaring him eligible for capital punishment. (They now agree that he should not be executed.)
Part of it is also because of the various procedural obstacles that Georgia law, federal law, and the Supreme Court have imposed in cases like Hill's, where defendants aren't able to raise a meritorious constitutional claim until after they've exhausted their direct appeal and their first round of post-conviction review. (In an amicus brief I co-authored, a group of habeas corpus experts explained why the Supreme Court nevertheless has the power to grant relief in Hill's case, should it desire to do so.)...
Hill's case is ultimately a test of a proposition far more fundamental than what is typically at stake in capital cases: Can the Constitution abide the execution of a prisoner, who the state's own experts agree is categorically ineligible for the death penalty, entirely because of procedural flaws in his claims? The Supreme Court has never held that the answer is yes, and has hinted rather strongly to the contrary in the context of "actual innocence" cases — including as recently as two months ago.
The time for hinting is running out — for Hill, for the Court, and for the country.

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

"The Impact of Neuroimages in the Sentencing Phase of Capital Trials" [feedly]

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Recently Posted on SSRN (forthcoming in the Journal of Empirical Legal Studies): "The Impact of Neuroimages in the Sentencing Phase of Capital Trials" MICHAEL J. SAKS, Arizona State University (ASU) - Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law N. J. SCHWEITZER,...

Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the WAIS-IV and WMS-IV in Older Adults [feedly]

Shared via feedly // published on JOURNAL OF PSYCHOEDUCATIONAL ASSESSMENT - Web of Knowledge // visit site

Title: Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the WAIS-IV and WMS-IV in Older Adults
Author(s): Miller, Delyana I.; Davidson, Patrick S. R.; Schindler, Dwayne; et al.
Source: JOURNAL OF PSYCHOEDUCATIONAL ASSESSMENT, 31 (4): 375-390 AUG 2013
IDS#: 170XO. ISSN: 0734-2829

Monday, July 15, 2013

Statement from Warren Hill's attorney on stay of execution

Begin forwarded message:

Subject: [StandDown-L] Statement from Warren Hill's attorney on stay of execution
Reply-To: standdown-l+owners@googlegroups.com

Fulton County Superior Court has temporarily stayed tonight's scheduled
execution of Warren Hill so that a briefing can take place on Mr. Hill's
complaint challenging the extreme secrecy surrounding the execution in light
of Georgia's new Lethal Injection Secrecy Act. That briefing is scheduled to
take place at 8 A.M. on Thursday, July 18th. A new execution date is
expected to be set for Thursday, July 18th at 7 p.m. EST.

Mr. Hill's habeas petition is pending with the U.S. Supreme Court. The
habeas petition (http://goo.gl/GKBcX) includes new information about the
unanimous finding of all doctors who have examined him that Mr. Hill is a
person with mental retardation.

The following is a statement from Brian Kammer, attorney for Warren Hill:

"We are relieved that the Superior Court of Fulton County has stayed the
execution of Warren Hill, a man with mental retardation who has an
undisputed I.Q. of 70. Today, the Court found that more time is needed to
explore Mr. Hill's complaint, which raises serious concerns about the
extreme secrecy surrounding the execution process in Georgia, and the new
Lethal Injection Secrecy Act, which took effect one day before Georgia
issued a death warrant for Mr. Hill. At this time, there is far too much we
do not know about how the state intends to proceed in this, the most extreme
act a government can take against a citizen.

Ultimately, we are hopeful that the United States Supreme Court will hear
Mr. Hill's pending Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus, and will have the
opportunity to consider the important new evidence in this case, that there
is unanimous consensus among all the doctors who have examined Mr. Hill,
including three who previously testified for the state, that he is a person
with mental retardation, and thus ineligible for the death penalty."

-- Brian Kammer, attorney for Warren Hill | July 15, 2013

/ / / / /
Steve Hall
The StandDown Texas Project
PO Box 13475
Austin, TX 78711

512.879.1675 (o
512.627.3011 (m
Skype: shall78711

www.StandDown.org
shall@standdown.org
@standdown_tx
@steve_hall

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In Defense of Intelligent Testing [feedly]

Shared via feedly // published on Scientific American - Mind & Brain // visit site

I recently published a book called Ungifted: Intelligence Redefined . With a title like that, you'd think the book is one big anti-IQ, anti-testing manifesto. It isn't. While the IQ test certainly...

-- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com

Article: The Writ of Habeas Corpus and the Warren Hill Case

The Writ of Habeas Corpus and the Warren Hill Case
http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/writ-habeas-corpus-and-warren-hill-case

Sent via Flipboard

Sunday, July 14, 2013

Article: Mentally retarded inmate faces execution: Column

Mentally retarded inmate faces execution: Column
http://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2013/07/14/lindsay-harrison-on-mentally-retarded-death-row-inmate/2512025/

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Thursday, July 11, 2013

Article: Warren Hill faces Monday execution unless US supreme court steps in

Warren Hill faces Monday execution unless US supreme court steps in
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/jul/11/warren-hill-execution-supreme-court

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Knowledge Alert - JOURNAL OF FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY PRACTICE

>
> Web of Knowledge Table of Contents Alert
>
> Journal Name: JOURNAL OF FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY PRACTICE (ISSN: 1522-8932)
> Issue: Vol. 13 No. 3, 2013
> IDS#: 160DU
> Alert Expires: 10 JAN 2014
> Number of Articles in Issue: 4 (4 included in this e-mail)
> Organization ID: c4f3d919329a46768459d3e35b8102e6
> ========================================================================
> Note: Instructions on how to purchase the full text of an article and Thomson Reuters Science Contact information are at the end of the e-mail.
> ========================================================================
>
>
> *Pages: 171-191 (Article)
> *View Full Record: http://gateway.webofknowledge.com/gateway/Gateway.cgi?GWVersion=2&SrcAuth=Alerting&SrcApp=Alerting&DestApp=CCC&DestLinkType=FullRecord;KeyUT=CCC:000320098000001
> *Order Full Text [ ]
>
> Title:
> Perspective Taking, Gender, and Legal Instructions in a Sexual Harassment Case
>
> Authors:
> Zimmerman, DM; Myers, B
>
> Source:
> *JOURNAL OF FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY PRACTICE*, 13 (3):171-191; MAY 1 2013
>
> Abstract:
> We examined the roles of legal standards, perspective taking, and gender
> on sexual harassment judgments. Two-hundred and seventy-three
> undergraduates were randomly assigned to instruction and timing
> conditions in a 2 (participant sex)x4 (legal standard/perspective-taking
> instruction)x2 (timing of instructions) between-subjects factorial
> design. Perspective taking predicted verdicts and harassment ratings.
> Women more frequently found in favor of the female plaintiff than men,
> and these sex differences were mediated by perspective taking.
> Participants given instructions on reasonableness were less likely to
> find in favor of the plaintiff than those given no instructions on
> reasonableness, and timing of instructions impacted verdicts.
>
> ========================================================================
>
>
> *Pages: 192-203 (Article)
> *View Full Record: http://gateway.webofknowledge.com/gateway/Gateway.cgi?GWVersion=2&SrcAuth=Alerting&SrcApp=Alerting&DestApp=CCC&DestLinkType=FullRecord;KeyUT=CCC:000320098000002
> *Order Full Text [ ]
>
> Title:
> Personality Assessment Inventory Scores as Predictors of Treatment Compliance and Misconduct among Sex Offenders Participating in Community-Based Treatment
>
> Authors:
> Percosky, AB; Boccaccini, MT; Bitting, BS; Hamilton, PM
>
> Source:
> *JOURNAL OF FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY PRACTICE*, 13 (3):192-203; MAY 1 2013
>
> Abstract:
> This study examined the ability of the Personality Assessment Inventory
> scores to predict noncompliance and probation revocations among a sample
> of sex offenders mandated to participate in community-based treatment.
> Scores on the Borderline Features (BOR) scale and subscales were the
> strongest predictors of noncompliance, with effect sizes as large as d =
> 1.50, outperforming scores on scales designed to predict treatment
> rejection and antisocial traits. Relatively low BOR cut scores (e.g.,
> 50T, 55T) appeared to be most useful for identifying those at risk for
> noncompliance, suggesting that those with even moderate levels of
> borderline or personality disorder traits may be at risk for
> noncompliance.
>
> ========================================================================
>
>
> *Pages: 204-244 (Article)
> *View Full Record: http://gateway.webofknowledge.com/gateway/Gateway.cgi?GWVersion=2&SrcAuth=Alerting&SrcApp=Alerting&DestApp=CCC&DestLinkType=FullRecord;KeyUT=CCC:000320098000003
> *Order Full Text [ ]
>
> Title:
> Death Penalty Decisions: Instruction Comprehension, Attitudes, and Decision Mediators
>
> Authors:
> Patry, MW; Penrod, SD
>
> Source:
> *JOURNAL OF FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY PRACTICE*, 13 (3):204-244; MAY 1 2013
>
> Abstract:
> This research tested jury comprehension of death penalty instructions
> and the use of evidence in capital punishment decision making. Two
> studies are presented. The first study (N = 245 undergraduates) was
> based on paper-and-pencil methods, and the second study (N = 735
> jury-eligible participants) involved videotaped stimuli and deliberating
> mock jurors. Manipulations included instructions and several different
> variations in the evidence. Findings support previous research showing
> low comprehension of capital penalty instructions. Higher instruction
> comprehension was associated with higher likelihood of issuing life
> sentence decisions. The importance of instruction comprehension is
> emphasized in a social cognitive model of jury decision making at the
> sentencing phase of capital cases.
>
> ========================================================================
>
>
> *Pages: 245-265 (Article)
> *View Full Record: http://gateway.webofknowledge.com/gateway/Gateway.cgi?GWVersion=2&SrcAuth=Alerting&SrcApp=Alerting&DestApp=CCC&DestLinkType=FullRecord;KeyUT=CCC:000320098000004
> *Order Full Text [ ]
>
> Title:
> Detection of Cognitive Malingering or Suboptimal Effort in Defendants Undergoing Competency to Stand Trial Evaluations
>
> Authors:
> Paradis, CM; Solomon, LZ; Owen, E; Brooker, M
>
> Source:
> *JOURNAL OF FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY PRACTICE*, 13 (3):245-265; MAY 1 2013
>
> Abstract:
> The present study evaluated the usefulness of two popular tests of
> cognitive malingering in a real-life forensic setting. Only 25 of 166
> defendants referred for competency to stand trial evaluations claimed to
> have memory problems. Compared with the rest of the defendants, these
> individuals had a significantly higher incidence of affective disorders
> and lower incidence of psychotic disorders. Almost half failed both the
> Rey 15-Item Test (RFT) and the Test of Memory Malingering (TOMM), and
> 64% failed one or both. Seven of the eight suspected malingerers
> diagnosed with psychotic disorders failed both the RFT and TOMM. The
> incidence of psychotic disorders was significantly higher in those who
> failed the RFT than those who passed and somewhat higher in those who
> failed the TOMM than those who passed. The possibility that some
> defendants scored below the recommended cutoff scores because of
> intellectual limitations or concentration problems stemming from their
> psychotic illness is discussed.
>
> ========================================================================
>

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

The Independent Living Scales in Civil Competency Evaluations: Initial Findings and Prediction of Competency Adjudication [feedly]

Shared via feedly // published on LAW AND HUMAN BEHAVIOR - Web of Knowledge // visit site

Title: The Independent Living Scales in Civil Competency Evaluations: Initial Findings and Prediction of Competency Adjudication
Author(s): Quickel, Emalee J. W.; Demakis, George J.
Source: LAW AND HUMAN BEHAVIOR, 37 (3): 155-162 JUN 2013
IDS#: 159SM. ISSN: 0147-7307

Detection of Cognitive Malingering or Suboptimal Effort in Defendants Undergoing Competency to Stand Trial Evaluations [feedly]

Shared via feedly // published on JOURNAL OF FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY PRACTICE - Web of Knowledge // visit site

Title: Detection of Cognitive Malingering or Suboptimal Effort in Defendants Undergoing Competency to Stand Trial Evaluations
Author(s): Paradis, Cheryl M.; Solomon, Linda Z.; Owen, Elizabeth; et al.
Source: JOURNAL OF FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY PRACTICE, 13 (3): 245-265 MAY 2013
IDS#: 160DU. ISSN: 1522-8932

Death Penalty Decisions: Instruction Comprehension, Attitudes, and Decision Mediators [feedly]

Shared via feedly // published on JOURNAL OF FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY PRACTICE - Web of Knowledge // visit site

Title: Death Penalty Decisions: Instruction Comprehension, Attitudes, and Decision Mediators
Author(s): Patry, Marc W.; Penrod, Steven D.
Source: JOURNAL OF FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY PRACTICE, 13 (3): 204-244 MAY 2013
IDS#: 160DU. ISSN: 1522-8932

Friday, July 5, 2013

RESOURCES: New ABA Report on Criminal Justice and the Death Penalty [feedly]

Shared via feedly // published on Death Penalty Information Center // visit site

The American Bar Association recently released its annual report, The State of Criminal Justice-2013, including a chapter on developments in capital punishment in the United States. In that chapter, author Ronald Tabak focuses on the continuing decline in death sentences and executions, recent innocence cases, and new voices who have spoken out about the death penalty. The chapter highlights recent research on capital punishment, including studies that found racial disparities in death sentences in the federal and military death penalty systems. The report also discusses relevant cases from the U.S. Supreme Court, including Maples v. Thomas and Martinez v. Ryan, dealing with proper representation in capital cases. Tabak concludes that as the problems surrounding the death penalty continue to grow, its elimination "deserves serious consideration."

Some of the themes covered in the ABA Report are also addressed in DPIC's Year End Report.

(R. Tabak, "Capital Punishment," American Bar Association, in The State of Criminal Justice 2013 (2013)). See Studies.

Monday, July 1, 2013

Structural and incremental validity of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale–Fourth Edition with a clinical sample. [feedly]

Shared via feedly // published on Psychological Assessment - Vol 25, Iss 2 // visit site

Structural and incremental validity of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale–Fourth Edition (WAIS–IV; Wechsler, 2008a) was examined with a sample of 300 individuals referred for evaluation at a university-based clinic. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated that the WAIS–IV structure was best represented by 4 first-order factors as well as a general intelligence factor in a direct hierarchical model. The general intelligence factor accounted for the most common and total variance among the subtests. Incremental validity analyses indicated that the Full Scale IQ (FSIQ) generally accounted for medium to large portions of academic achievement variance. For all measures of academic achievement, the first-order factors combined accounted for significant achievement variance beyond that accounted for by the FSIQ, but individual factor index scores contributed trivial amounts of achievement variance. Implications for interpreting WAIS–IV results are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved)

Long-term stability of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Fourth Edition. [feedly]

Shared via feedly // published on Psychological Assessment - Vol 25, Iss 2 // visit site

Long-term stability of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Fourth Edition (WISC–IV; Wechsler, 2003) was investigated with a sample of 344 students from 2 school districts twice evaluated for special education eligibility at an average interval of 2.84 years. Test–retest reliability coefficients for the Verbal Comprehension Index (VCI), Perceptual Reasoning Index (PRI), Working Memory Index (WMI), Processing Speed Index (PSI), and the Full Scale IQ (FSIQ) were .72, .76, .66, .65, and .82, respectively. As predicted, the test–retest reliability coefficients for the subtests (Mdn = .56) were generally lower than the index scores (Mdn = .69) and the FSIQ (.82). On average, subtest scores did not differ by more than 1 point, and index scores did not differ by more than 2 points across the test–retest interval. However, 25% of the students earned FSIQ scores that differed by 10 or more points, and 29%, 39%, 37%, and 44% of the students earned VCI, PRI, WMI, and PSI scores, respectively, that varied by 10 or more points. Given this variability, it cannot be assumed that WISC–IV scores will be consistent across long test–retest intervals for individual students. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved)

Exploratory and higher order factor analysis of the WJ-III full test battery: A school-aged analysis. [feedly]

Shared via feedly // published on Psychological Assessment - Vol 25, Iss 2 // visit site

[Correction Notice: An Erratum for this article was reported in Vol 25(2) of Psychological Assessment (see record 2013-22270-001). In Table 4 the last column heading appears as F1. It should appear as F6. The captions for Tables 2, 4, 6, and 8 include the language F1-F5 Factor 1-5. The captions should read F1-F6 Factor 1-6.] Development of the Woodcock-Johnson (3rd ed.; WJ-III; Woodcock, McGrew & Mather, 2001a) was guided in part by Carroll's (1993) 3-stratum theory of cognitive abilities and based on confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), even though Carroll used exploratory factor analysis (EFA) to derive his theory. Using CFA, McGrew and Woodcock (2001) found a 9-factor model across all age ranges. To determine if the 9-factor structure holds for the full WJ-III battery, we applied currently recognized best practices in EFA to 2 school-aged 42-subtest correlation matrices (ages 9–13 and 14–19 years). Six factors emerged at the 9–13 age range, while 5 factors were indicated at the 14–19 age range. The resulting 1st-order factors displayed patterns of both convergence with and divergence from the WJ-III results presented in the Technical Manual. These results also revealed a robust manifestation of general intelligence (g) that dwarfed the variance attributed to the lower order factors. It is surprising that this study represents the first time the WJ-III full battery was subjected to EFA analyses given the instrument's significant use by practitioners and that it served as the initial evidentiary basis for Cattell-Horn-Carroll (CHC) theory. The lack of confirmation of CFA results with EFA methods in the current study permits questioning of the structure of the WJ-III and its relationship with CHC theory. Additional independent, structural analyses are clearly indicated for the WJ-III full test battery before we can be confident in its structure. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved)

An alternative Cattell–Horn–Carroll (CHC) factor structure of the WAIS-IV: Age invariance of an alternative model for ages 70–90. [feedly]

Shared via feedly // published on Psychological Assessment - Vol 25, Iss 2 // visit site

The Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale—Fourth Edition (WAIS-IV) is by the far the most popular intelligence test for the assessment of adults in clinical and neuropsychological practice. Despite a number of studies examining the factor structure of the WAIS-IV from a Cattell–Horn–Carroll (CHC) perspective (Benson, Hulac, & Kranzler, 2010; Ward, Bergman, & Hebert, 2012), a CHC interpretation of the WAIS-IV for individuals ages 70 and above has been absent from the literature. The exclusion of individuals ages 70 and above in previous research is likely due to the absence of several key supplemental subtests used to create a full CHC model. We provide an alternative five-factor CHC model of the WAIS-IV which includes only the subtests administered to individuals ages 70 and above in the standardization sample. Our results show (a) the alternative CHC model fits the data well; (b) this alternative CHC model met criteria for partial strict measurement invariance across the life span (only Similarities showed noninvariance) using strict criteria; (c) the five factors for ages 70–90 measure the same five CHC broad abilities identified in previous analyses reported for ages 16–69; and (d) the five-factor CHC solution for ages 70–90 is valid for the entire WAIS-IV age range and can be used whenever examiners administer the core battery but opt not to administer supplemental subtests. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved)

Incremental criterion validity of WAIS–IV factor index scores: Relationships with WIAT–II and WIAT–III subtest and composite scores. [feedly]

Shared via feedly // published on Psychological Assessment - Vol 25, Iss 2 // visit site

The present study examined the incremental validity of Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale–4th Edition (WAIS–IV; Wechsler, 2008a) factor index scores in predicting academic achievement on the Wechsler Individual Achievement Test–2nd Edition (WIAT–II; Psychological Corporation, 2002a) and on the Wechsler Individual Achievement Test–3rd Edition (WIAT–III; Wechsler, 2009a) beyond that predicted by the WAIS–IV Full Scale IQ (FSIQ). As with previous intelligence test incremental validity studies, the WAIS–IV FSIQ accounted for statistically significant and generally large portions of WIAT–II and WIAT–III subtest and composite score variance. WAIS–IV factor index scores combined to provide statistically significant increments in variance accounted for in most WIAT–II and WIAT–III subtest and composite scores over and above the FSIQ score; however, the effect sizes ranged from trivial to medium as observed in investigations with other intelligence tests (i.e., Glutting, Watkins, Konold, & McDermott, 2006; Youngstrom, Kogos, & Glutting, 1999). Individually, the WAIS–IV factor index scores provided trivial to small unique contributions to predicting WIAT–II and WIAT–III scores. This finding indicated that the FSIQ should retain primacy and greatest interpretive weight in WAIS–IV interpretation, as previously indicated by WAIS–IV subtest variance partitions form hierarchical exploratory factor analyses (Canivez & Watkins, 2010a, 2012b). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved)

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