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Documentation · 1945

Wechsler Memory Scale: First standardized memory test

Wechsler's 1945 memory battery - the first standardized clinical memory test. 7 subtests yielding a Memory Quotient (MQ) on the same metric as the WAIS IQ. Used to diagnose amnesia, dementia, and Korsakoff's syndrome. The direct ancestor of every modern memory assessment.

Read About the Test

About the Wechsler Memory Scale

Before 1945, clinical memory assessment was unstandardized - clinicians used informal questions and rough impressions. David Wechsler's 1945 Wechsler Memory Scale (WMS) changed this. The WMS had 7 subtests: Personal and Current Information, Orientation, Mental Control (count backward, alphabet, count by 3s), Logical Memory (story recall), Memory Span (digits forward and backward), Visual Reproduction, Associate Learning. Scores combined to produce a Memory Quotient on the same scale as Wechsler's IQ tests (mean 100, SD 15).

The WMS quickly became standard in neuropsychology. It was sensitive to amnesia, Korsakoff's syndrome, dementia, and frontal lobe injury. Different patterns of subtest performance helped differentiate diagnoses: Korsakoff patients failed Logical Memory and Associate Learning but kept Personal Information; Alzheimer's patients failed Orientation early; ECT effects showed up as recent memory failures with intact remote memory.

WMS has been revised in 1987 (WMS-R), 1997 (WMS-III), and 2009 (WMS-IV, current). All editions are copyrighted by Pearson. The 1945 original is in the literature but Pearson actively protects the modern editions. The WMS remains one of the 5 most-used neuropsychological tests in clinical practice.

Copyright note: Current WMS-IV is copyrighted (Pearson). The 1945 original paper is the historical source.

The 7 subtests

#1
Personal & Current Information Date, year, current events.
Copyrighted
#2
Orientation Time, place, person.
Copyrighted
#3
Mental Control Count backward, alphabet, serial 3s.
Copyrighted
#4
Logical Memory Recall details from a brief story.
Copyrighted
#5
Memory Span Repeat digit sequences forward and backward.
Copyrighted
#6
Visual Reproduction Draw geometric designs from memory.
Copyrighted
#7
Associate Learning Learn paired-associate word pairs.
Copyrighted

Sample Items (Illustrative)

Items are presented verbally or visually, and responses are scored based on accuracy, completeness, and recall ability. Some sections require verbal responses, while others involve written or drawn outputs.

Sample 1 · Personal & Current Information
What is the current year, and can you name a significant event that has happened recently?
Example response: The current year is 1945, and a significant event is the end of World War II.
Sample 2 · Orientation
Can you tell me what day of the week it is today and where we are right now?
Example response: Today is Wednesday, and we are in the testing room at the university.
Sample 3 · Mental Control
Please count backward from 20 to 1 as quickly as you can.
Example response: 20, 19, 18, 17, 16, 15, 14, 13, 12, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.
Sample 4 · Logical Memory
Listen to this short story: 'A man went to the market to buy some apples. On his way, he met an old friend.' Now, can you recall the details of the story?
Example response: A man went to the market to buy apples and met an old friend on the way.
Sample 5 · Visual Reproduction
Look at this geometric design for 10 seconds. Now, please draw it from memory.
Example response: A drawing that closely resembles the original geometric design shown.

These are illustrative samples, not actual items from the protected test.

Source

All test materials and historical content on this page are transcribed from:

Wechsler, D. (1945). A standardized memory scale for clinical use. Journal of Psychology, 19, 87-95.

The 1945 WMS was the first standardized clinical memory battery. Current editions (WMS-IV, 2009) are Pearson copyrighted. The original 1945 paper is the source we document.

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