Publication date: December 2019
Source: Research in Developmental Disabilities, Volume 95
Author(s): Francesca Pulina, Silvia Lanfranchi, Lucy Henry, Renzo Vianello
Abstract
Background
Little is currently known about borderline intellectual functioning (BIF), a condition characterized by an intelligence quotient between one and two standard deviations below the average, that affects about 14% of the population.
Aims
The present study aimed to analyze the intellectual profile of school-aged children with BIF.
Method and procedure
The WISC-IV was administered to 204 children with BIF attending Italian primary and lower secondary school, and their profile was compared with that of a control group of typically developing (TD) children.
Results
The WISC-IV profile of the children with BIF differed from that of the TD children, and the former’s performance was worse than the latter’s in all the measures considered. The children with BIF also showed significant differences between the four main factor indices, scoring lowest for working memory, while the TD control group’s profile was flat (as expected on the grounds of standardization criteria). No differences were found between the profiles of children with versus without a comorbid neurodevelopmental disorder.
Discussion
Our results support the hypothesis that individuals with BIF have a characteristic profile with specific weaknesses.