COMPOSITE SAS OF THE STANFORD-BINET-INTELLIGENCE-SCALE, 4TH EDITION -IS IT DETERMINED BY ONLY ONE AREA SAS

This study presents results of an investigation into the validity of t he Composite Standard Age Score (SAS) of the Stanford-Binet Intelligen ce Scale, Fourth Edition (R. L. Thorndike, E. P. Hagen & J. M. Sattler , 1986) as a measure of intellectual ability for individuals with ment al retardation. On the basis of the results obtained with the sample o f participants in this study, the Composite SAS does not appear to acc urately reflect the overall intellectual abilities of many individuals with mental retardation. Specifically, when there is a discrepancy am ong the SASs of the Four Areas (Verbal Reasoning [VR], Abstract/Visual Reasoning [Ab/VR], Quantitative Reasoning [QR], and Short-Term Memory [STM]), the Composite SAS is closest to the lowest Area SAS instead o f an aggregate of the four Area SASs. Archival data demonstrated that this finding is a consistent pattern in the Binet scores for individua ls with mental retardation but not for individuals of other intellectu al levels. The reasons and the implications for this finding are discu ssed.