Intelligence, testing and IQ tests

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Testing and the IQ test

Intelligences What is intelligence?

Early ideas

About a century ago, they (educators, psychologists, politicians...) had the idea that intelligence was a kind of general thinking or problem-solving ability involving • good memory • mathematical or logical reasoning ability • verbal ability

IQ tests

Intelligence tests were developed originally (by Binet) to sort out which students needed special coaching to bring them up to the same cognitive standards as their peers. Soon, however, intelligence tests began to be used to choose children and adults for jobs or educational opportunities.

The false assumptions underlying this use of IQ tests were:

• IQ (as measured by IQ tests) can predict future performance in school, at work and in life in general
• your intelligence does not change
• IQ tests actually measure problem-solving, creative ability.

It soon became clear the IQ tests did not reliably predict future success at anything except sitting IQ tests. Some people with very ordinary IQs did very well in life, rising to top management positions and becoming multimillionaires. Some people with high IQs did the same, but others seemed to have no particularly outstanding success and yet others ended up as homeless alcoholics.

Your score on an IQ test can be affected by a number of things besides your intelligence. Your scores are likely to be affected if you are sick, stressed or seriously low on sleep. They can also be affected by the quality of your schooling, by whether you have been tutored for the tests, by whether English is your first language and whether there is unintentional bias in the questions. For example, if you’ve studied arithmetic and geometric sequences at school, you’ll find some IQ test questions much easier than someone without that preparation. Similarly, a question in the context of archery might favour those few who have had the opportunity to play the sport.

Multiple abilities

As far back as 1938, Thurston suggested there were six primary components of intelligence:

numeric ability
verbal ability
spatial thinking
word fluency
reasoning (inductively and deductively)
memorisation ability

In 1967 Guildford suggested that intellect involves:

mental operations (process of thinking)
- cognition (identification of information)
- convergent thinking (finding the correct answer where there is only one correct answer)
- divergent thinking (when there is no clearly identifiable correct answer but a range of possibilities

evaluation (judgement)
memory
content (subject of our thoughts)
products of thinking In recent years, Gardiner and others have suggested nine “multiple intelligences”
Linguistic ability
logical-mathematical intelligence (causality, symbolic manipulation)
visual spatial intelligence
bodily kinaesthetic intelligence
musical intelligence
interpersonal intelligence
intrapersonal intelligence
naturalist
existentialist

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What is Learning? Constructivism Types of Learning Expertise and Creativity Formal Training Short-term memory Associative memory, Repetition & Encoding Associative memory and the Zebra Accountability and Assessment Validity and reliability More Validity Testing and the IQ test The Adult Learner Back to Gryphon Home	Testing and the IQ test Intelligences What is intelligence? Early ideas About a century ago, they (educators, psychologists, politicians...) had the idea that intelligence was a kind of general thinking or problem-solving ability involving • good memory • mathematical or logical reasoning ability • verbal ability IQ tests Intelligence tests were developed originally (by Binet) to sort out which students needed special coaching to bring them up to the same cognitive standards as their peers. Soon, however, intelligence tests began to be used to choose children and adults for jobs or educational opportunities. The false assumptions underlying this use of IQ tests were: • IQ (as measured by IQ tests) can predict future performance in school, at work and in life in general • your intelligence does not change • IQ tests actually measure problem-solving, creative ability. It soon became clear the IQ tests did not reliably predict future success at anything except sitting IQ tests. Some people with very ordinary IQs did very well in life, rising to top management positions and becoming multimillionaires. Some people with high IQs did the same, but others seemed to have no particularly outstanding success and yet others ended up as homeless alcoholics. Your score on an IQ test can be affected by a number of things besides your intelligence. Your scores are likely to be affected if you are sick, stressed or seriously low on sleep. They can also be affected by the quality of your schooling, by whether you have been tutored for the tests, by whether English is your first language and whether there is unintentional bias in the questions. For example, if you’ve studied arithmetic and geometric sequences at school, you’ll find some IQ test questions much easier than someone without that preparation. Similarly, a question in the context of archery might favour those few who have had the opportunity to play the sport. Multiple abilities As far back as 1938, Thurston suggested there were six primary components of intelligence: numeric ability verbal ability spatial thinking word fluency reasoning (inductively and deductively) memorisation ability In 1967 Guildford suggested that intellect involves: mental operations (process of thinking) cognition (identification of information) convergent thinking (finding the correct answer where there is only one correct answer) divergent thinking (when there is no clearly identifiable correct answer but a range of possibilities evaluation (judgement) memory content (subject of our thoughts) products of thinking In recent years, Gardiner and others have suggested nine “multiple intelligences” Linguistic ability logical-mathematical intelligence (causality, symbolic manipulation) visual spatial intelligence bodily kinaesthetic intelligence musical intelligence interpersonal intelligence intrapersonal intelligence naturalist existentialist