New insights into cognitive abilities of adjudicated youths

The purpose of this study was to investigate the justification of using Full Scale IQ scores as the principal means of determining whether adjudicated youths are as capable of engaging in higher-order thinking processes as youths in public schools. This study examined the performance of a group of adjudicated youths (N = 50) in a correctional training school and a comparative group in a public school district (N = 50) on 4 of 10 mandatory subtests which comprise the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC-R, WISC-III). The criteria for the subjective selection of subtests to be examined focused on choosing those which measured cognitive abilities and were not heavily influenced by acquired academic skills and socioeconomic factors. For each of the selected subtests, an inferential statistical analysis was made at a.01 level of significance using independent sample two-tailed t tests to compare the difference between the means of subtest scaled scores for subjects from the correctional training school and the public school district. The results of this analysis indicated that there was no significant difference between the cognitive abilities of the youths in the correctional training school and a comparative group in a public school district as measured by the selected subtests. This study supports the conclusion that the use of a Full Scale IQ score from a standardized intelligence test may not accurately reflect the individual cognitive abilities of adjudicated youth to engage in higher-order thinking processes. Recommendations were made for correctional educators to identify approaches which could be used that better target the higher-order thinking skills of an adjudicated youth population.