Continuous norming: Implications for the WAIS-R

Following Gorsuch (1983, 1984), a method for generating continuously adjusted age norms is illustrated using the normative data for the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised (WAIS-R) (Wechsler, 1981). Specific procedures for calculating age-adjusted Verbal, Performance, and Full Scale IQ scores also are demonstrated, with a worked example. Compared to the original tabled norms for the WAIS-R, IQ scores based on continuous norming are more accurate because they involve an analytic smoothing procedure that eliminates the inaccuracies introduced by traditional tabled norms and because people are compared against their exact age groups.