Overview
The Wechsler Nonverbal Scale of Ability (WNV; Wechsler & Naglieri, 2006) is an individually-administered, norm-referenced nonverbal test of intelligence for culturally and linguistically diverse groups. It can be used for individuals ages 4 years through 21 years, 11 months. It may be useful for assessing English language learners, hard of hearing or deaf, language difficulties or disorders; it can be used to assess persons who may need remedial or gifted services. The subtests consist of (a) Matrices, (b) Coding, (c) Spatial Span (a visual memory measure corresponding to the auditory task in Digit Span), (d) Spatial Span Forward, (e) Spatial Span Backwards, (f) Picture Arrangement, (g) Object Assembly, and (h) Recognition. Two forms, a full battery and a brief version, are available. The WNV can be scored by hand or with scoring software included in the test kit. The WNV manual includes minimal verbal instructions in French, Spanish, Chinese, German, and Dutch.
Summary
Age: 4 years 0 months to 21 years 11 months
Time to Administer: Full battery: 45 minutes. Brief version: 15-20 minutes.
Method of Administration: Individually administered, norm-referenced nonverbal measure of cognitive abilities; for use with culturally and linguistically diverse individuals
Yields full scale standard score (M = 100, SD = 15), subtest T-scores, percentile ranks
Subscales: Overall Composite Score: Full Scale Score
Subtest Scores: Matrices, Coding, Object Assembly, Recognition, Spatial Span, Picture Arrangement
Autism Related Research
None found. However, in their review of the WNV, Massa and Rivera (2009) pointed out that no validity for the intended group—those with language limitations (which could include persons with autism)—is included in the test manual since the special population subsample of the norming sample was pooled. Further, these authors pointed out that the test authors themselves suggested caution when using the WNV for persons with English language or communicative limitations.