An Investigation of the Potential Relationship Between Reading Ability and Measured Intelligence

The purpose of the present study was to attempt to validate the pattern of Wechsler (WISC) Subtest performance for retarded readers derived from the published literature on a population of retarded readers from northwest Kansas. This pattern primarily consists of Performance I.Q. being significantly higher than Verbal I.Q. The subject population was drawn from the total number of children referred to the Reading Service Center of Fort Hays Kansas State College since 1957. It included only those children evaluated with both the WISC and the Durrell Analysis of Reading Difficulty. The overall results confirmed this trend for Performance I.Q. to be higher than Verbal I.Q. The method Trend Analysts of Variance was used to evaluate the data. It was concluded that the previous research trend was reinforced for the present population, and that the results held special significance for educators and psychologists using the WISC as a diagnostic tool. Recommendations were made for this diagnostic usage, and possible future research was suggested