What changed, and what didn't
The twelve subtests are listed on our WISC 1949 page. The size of the WISC-R norm sample isn't given in these sources; the later WISC-IV and WISC-V each used 2,200 children.4
Two timelines, one decade
Move through the years. The upper lane follows the WISC-R; the lower lane follows Larry P., the California case over using IQ tests to place Black children in classes for the "educable mentally retarded".
The cards show the most recent event in each lane up to the chosen year. Tap a dot to jump to it.
"The tests were standardized and developed on an all-white population…"The district court, as quoted in the Ninth Circuit appeal ruling5
It was filed by the NAACP Legal Defense Fund for six African-American students in San Francisco. "Larry P." was one of them; his real name was Darryl Lester. Wilson Riles was California's state superintendent of public instruction.6
The court found the tests had never been designed to remove cultural bias against Black children, and so their validity was doubtful for culturally different groups.5
The sources name IQ tests in general, not the WISC-R specifically, as the subject of the case.
What researchers checked next
With the WISC-R running to 16, sixteen-year-olds could now take it or the older WAIS. A North Carolina study gave both to 25 adolescents referred as suspected mentally retarded.2
The author warned that wide gaps between the two needed careful justification by the examiner. Because its norms were newer, the WISC-R would likely be preferred in most cases.2
References
- [1]Reschly, D. J., & Ross-Reynolds, J. An investigation of WISC-R item bias with four sociocultural groups. ERIC ED222529 (PDF).files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED222529.pdf
- [2]A comparison of WISC-R and WAIS scales for sixteen-year-olds (presented April 1976, Council for Exceptional Children). ERIC ED126635 (PDF).files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED126635.pdf
- [3]Wikipedia contributors. Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (accessed 30 Sept 2026).en.wikipedia.org
- [4]Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC). EBSCO Research Starters: Health and Medicine.ebsco.com
- [5]Larry P. v. Riles, 793 F.2d 969 (9th Cir.). Public.Resource.Org.law.resource.org
- [6]Wikipedia contributors. Larry P. v. Riles (accessed 30 Sept 2026).en.wikipedia.org
- [7]Journal of Social Science Studies, 8(2) (2021), section on WISC revisions. Macrothink Institute (PDF).macrothink.org
Related historical tests
The 1949 test the WISC-R revised. The subtests stayed the same; the ages and, above all, the norms changed.
Once the WISC-R reached age 16, examiners had to choose between it and the WAIS. A 1976 study found the choice could change results.
Wechsler's preschool scale. With the WISC-R starting at 6, the two scales shared the early school years between them.
Cattell tried to remove culture from the items themselves. The WISC-R instead kept its items and changed who was in the norm sample.
A 1991 review found Slosson scores couldn't stand in for WISC-R scores. It shows how the WISC-R became the yardstick for other tests.
A drawing test promoted for minority and bilingual children, whose cross-cultural use was still questioned. Fairness to different groups was the central question of the 1970s.