WRITTEN COMPOSITIONS WERE OBTAINED FROM 48 CHILDREN, FOUR FROM EACH AGE GROUP FROM EIGHT THROUGH 11, ASSIGNED TO THREE IQ GROUPS--RETARDED, NORMAL, AND SUPERIOR. USING SEVERAL OF THE FLESCH CRITERIA (WHICH USE NUMBER OF SYLLABLES, AVERAGE SENTENCE LENGTH, AND NUMBER OF DEFINITE WORDS AS INDICES), COMPOSITIONS WERE SCORED FOR DEFINITENESS OF STYLE. RESULTS INDICATED THAT TWO CRITERIA, DEFINITE WORDS AND FLESCH'S FORMULA R, WERE ASSOCIATED WITH MENTAL AGE AND IQ PROVIDED A MEANS FOR DISTINGUISHING COMPOSITIONS WRITTEN BY THE SUPERIOR IQ GROUP FROM THOSE WRITTEN BY THE NORMAL AND RETARDED CHILDREN. INCREASES IN AGE WERE NOT ASSOCIATED WITH INCREASES IN STYLISTIC GENERALITY FOR THE AGE RANGE SAMPLED. (AUTHOR/DL)