PROFILE ANALYSIS WITH THE WECHSLER SCALES - WHY DOES IT PERSIST

Despite the overwhelming evidence that mitigates against the use of pr ofile analysis, the practice of diagnosing specific cognitive or proce ssing disabilities continues. The reason that profile analysis remains popular is probably because school psychologists are simply unfamilia r with the literature. They have a difficult time understanding the no tion of g, along with its implications. Generally, the users of profil e analysis assume that because the IQ tests, particularly the WISC sca les, generate scores from subtests that differ in content, they must b e measuring different types of cognitive abilities, and therefore the profile of these cognitive abilities should be diagnostically importan t. Finally, they find profile analysis more socially acceptable in tha t it implies the existence of multiple intelligences. The notion that a single IQ score captures all that is meaningful and practical about the IQ test is simply not acceptable, regardless of evidence to the co ntrary.