#BACKWARD DIGIT SPAN NORMS TRIAL#

The Digit Span Forward and Digit Span Backward scores cannot be averaged to obtain an estimate of the Digit Span Sequencing score. Forgoing administration of any part of Digit Span results in a lower raw score, and therefore an artificially low subtest scaled score. Digit Span Forward, Digit Span Backward, and Digit Span Sequencing all are necessary to derive the Digit Span subtest scaled score.

#BACKWARD DIGIT SPAN NORMS TRIAL#

Bypassing the second trial may therefore result in awarding credit for trials more difficult than the first.Īdminister all three parts of the subtest. In some cases, smaller numbers are used to make the first trial of a given span length easier than the second trial. This practice is problematic because trials vary in terms of difficulty. Never present only a single trial of a given length and subsequently award credit for subsequent trials of that length to shorten administration time. Varying voice pitch may facilitate use of a chunking strategy, which may result in an overestimate of ability.Īdminister all trials as instructed. Consistent pitch should be used to enunciate all except the final digit, for which voice pitch should drop slightly to indicate presentation is complete and the examinee may begin to respond. Another common error is to vary voice pitch when pronouncing each digit in a sequence. You may wish to tap your foot lightly under the table to ensure a standard presentation rate. It is critical to practice the proper presentation rate. One of the most common administration errors is to present digits faster than one per second. Weiss, in WAIS-IV Clinical Use and Interpretation, 2010 Digit Spanĭigit Span presentation rate and pitch should be consistent with standard procedures.

Backward digit span norms