This article presents the author's comments on Simon and Lichten's "Defining Mental Retardation: A Matter of Life and Death." Lichten and Simon (2007) argued for the use of a Total Quotient (TQ) that combines existing IQ and adaptive functioning scores into a single index. They proposed that the TQ index will improve the accuracy of mental…

Tables permitting the conversion of short-form composite scores to full-scale IQ estimates have been published for previous editions of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS). Equivalent tables are now needed for selected subtests of the WAIS-III. This article used Tellegen and Briggs's formulae to convert the sum of scaled scores for four…

The question of reliability in the intellectual assessment of young children is cause for concern among developmental psychologists and diagnosticians. The issue of reliability is confounded by normal variability in skills during early childhood, by the problem of consistency across time of age-appropriate assessment measures, and by the selection…

Argues that the typical psychometric model of human intelligence is limited because the database fails to take account of the many manifestations of intelligent behavior that are displayed in the world outside the testing room. Suggests that cognitive processes are influenced by test situation or setting and examiner's level of expertise. (PS)