Intelligence Scores of Gifted Students on the WISC-R

Abstract

In order to examine the hypothesis that children identified as "gifted" may have different patterns of scores on the WISC-R than children not identified as "gifted", the present study examined the WISC-R scores of three groups of children: those scoring in the average range, those with high IQ's, and those identified as "gifted." Factor analysis conducted on a sample of children identified as "gifted" yielded a four-factor solution accounting for approximately 65% of the total variance: Perceptual Organization, Verbal Comprehension, Acquisition of Knowledge, and Spatial Memory. Analyses of groups of children with average and above average intelligence scores revealed two- and three-factor solutions for the average children, but a pattern similar to the gifted child for the high IQ group. Results suggest that gifted children process information in a qualitatively different manner from average children.