THE WPPSI AT FOUR YEARS: A SEX DIFFERENCE IN VERBAL‐PERFORMANCE DISCREPANCIES

Abstract

S ummary . 72 boys and 72 girls at age 4½ years were tested on the WPPSI. Boys out‐scored girls significantly on Mazes. Twenty per cent of the children had discrepancies between the Verbal and Performance sub‐scales of 15 points or more. Low verbal and low performance sub‐groups were equally represented across sexes; but their location with respect to normative sub‐scale scores was not. Boys' sub‐groups were distinguished by changes in performance scores alone whereas for girls both performance and verbal quotients deviated equally. The results underline the necessity for comprehensive control data on materials used in studies of cognitive development.