A Validated WISC-V Short-Form to Estimate Intellectual Functioning in Very Preterm Children at Early School Age

Andone Sistiaga; Joana Garmendia; Jone Aliri; Itxaso Marti; Garazi Labayru

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2021.789124

A Validated WISC-V Short-Form to Estimate Intellectual Functioning in Very Preterm Children at Early School Age

Front Psychol. 2021 Dec 17:12:789124. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.789124. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Andone Sistiaga^{1

2}, Joana Garmendia¹, Jone Aliri¹, Itxaso Marti^{2

3

4}, Garazi Labayru^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Clinical and Health Psychology and Research Methodology, Psychology Faculty, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain.
² Neuroscience Area, Biodonostia Health Research Institute, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain.
³ Paediatric Department, Donostia University Hospital, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain.
⁴ Paediatric Department, Faculty of Medicine, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain.

Abstract

Very preterm children (gestational age < 32 weeks) frequently show neurodevelopmental difficulties (Inattention/dysexecutiveness) throughout their life-stages. A scarcity of resources, along with this population's cognitive vulnerability, makes the neuropsychological evaluation of these children both complicated and time-consuming. This study aimed to develop a specific and valid Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Fifth Edition (WISC-V) short-form to estimate intellectual functioning in this population. Eighty-four very preterm children (39 female; mean age = 6.50; SD: 0.06) were assessed with the WISC-V. Short-forms were developed following two independent strategies: a) multiple linear regressions for each index; b) correlational analyses between scores on all administered subtests and Full-Scale IQ. Validity of short-forms was analyzed. A short-form (Vocabulary, Matrix Reasoning, Picture Span, and Symbol Search) that satisfied 2/3 validation criteria was proposed. This validated short-form could facilitate the identification of cognitive difficulties in very preterm children, so that they could benefit from early care and support services, avoiding long assessment procedures.

Keywords: IQ; WISC-V; neurodevelopment; short-form; validation; very preterm.