Generally speaking, the language used in cognitive assessments is biased toward midwestern dialects, which historically was considered broadcast English (though the locus of broadcast/standard English appears to have shifted further west over the years). Some even have recorded listening selections, which are definitely biased toward midwestern pronunciation. I have heard some amusing regional usages reflected in answers. Actually, I once wrote to a test author (not of the WISC) to ask for suggestions to address a regional difference that was so pervasive that it was a rarity for a child to provide the "correct" answer--and he actually responded with alternate scoring!
aeh, since you have deep knowledge on the details of these tests, may I ask you another related question? Suppose there is a child who has little to no exposure to mass media, popular music, advertisements, electronics, movies etc and he reads books that his mom chooses for him, and his friends are more interested in active vigorous outdoor playing than chatting, would this kid be at a disadvantage when it comes to certain aspects of IQ tests? Is this part of the cultural bias?
(the reason that I am asking is because, my son came out of his WPPSI test at 4 years old and asked me what a candy bar was and what a fountain pen was, which I presume the tester referred to - he had neither seen nor read about either one of them at that point).
