WAIS-R subtest regroupings as predictors of employment success and failure among adults with learning disabilities - Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale

Journal of Rehabilitation, Oct-Dec, 1992 by Larry A. Faas

The heterogeneous nature of these populations rendered use of a formula for identification questionable and made it necessary to rely heavily upon judgments related to the clinical match of subjects attributes with the criteria proposed by the National Joint Committee for Learning Disabilities. Prior WAIS-R test data for the subjects were re-evaluated to verify the subjects' LD classification. Seventeen were college graduates, 30 were enrolled in college, and 39 were enrolled in a post-secondary-level training program for persons with LD who had failed to make a successful transition from school to employment. The age range for these subjects was 18 to 59 (mean = 26.7 years).

The population examined were primarily caucasian. The number of Afro-American, American-Indian, and Mexican-American subjects was too small to be examined as subgroups, or as a subgroup. The socioeconomic backgrounds of the subjects ranged from extreme poverty to substantial wealth. The lack of verifiable information about the subjects' backgrounds made it impossible to include this factor in the study. Their WAIS-R Verbal IQ scores ranged from 74 to 144 (mean = 98.4) and their Performance IQ scores ranged from 73 to 132 (mean = 95.7). Their Full Scale IQ's ranged from 74 to 140 with a mean of 96.8.

Procedure

A detailed employment history was collected from each subject. This history included a chronology of the subject's work history with detailed notations for each job. This information was validated by a certified school psychologist during a clinical interview. The following factors were included in the work history.

1. Type of job. 2. Length of employment. 3. Hourly wage. 4. How the subject got the job. 5. Level of satisfaction with the job. 6. Reason the subject left the job.

These histories were used to identify the success levels of the subjects. The subjects were initially divided into four job success level groups: (1) sustained employment--same job for one year or more, or continuous employment for one year or more, or continuous employment for one year that involved job changes with advancement, (2) intermittent employment--employed on several jobs for three months with the longest employment period less than one year, (3) chronically unemployed--those who held from 1 to 15 jobs with the longest employment period being less than three months, and (4) those who had never been employed. Following further inspection of the subjects' employment histories, groups 1 and 2 were combined to create a group referred to as successfully employed. Groups 3 and 4 were combined to create a group of subjects described as not successfully employed. Subjects without current WAIS-R scores were tested.

Data Analysis:

The microcomputer version of SPSS (Norusis, 1986) was used to analyze the data. A two-group discriminant function analysis was used to determine the extent to which WAIS-R subtest regrouping variables were useful in correctly predicting membership in the successful and unsuccessful LD adult groups.