Mental tests and I.Q. Do we have a limited capacity for intelligence? Yes / No I.Q. has a genetic component, so some intelligence level has been predetermined for you. However, exposure to a stimulating environment has been shown to increase I.Q. (not by a lot and not necessarily long lasting effect.) It has been shown that students who go to academic pre-school show an I.Q. advantage over those who went to regular pre-school. But by the end of the first grade, that academic advantage has almost entirely evaporated. Leaving both sets of students approximately where they were to begin with.

What is Intelligence or I.Q.? Reification: Viewing an abstract term as a concrete item. We don’t really know what IQ is but we speak of it as if it is something that you know you have (or don’t have). What kinds of mental tests are there? Mental ability – IQ Aptitude - Where your talents are Achievement – Measuring what you know W.A.I.S.C.-R W.I.S.C. Intelligence is really the ability to use the knowledge you have in order to problem solve and adapt.

Are people really getting smarter? Flynn Effect: The position that IQ scores (for some reason) increase over time. So for example, someone who took the IQ test in 1930 (and scored 100) would score approximately a 76 if scored today. Are people really getting smarter? Or is there something inherently wrong with the IQ test? Test Reliability: You get a similar score each time you take the test Test Validity: That the test you are using measures what it is supposed to measure. Test Sophistication: The idea that once you know what is on the test, your net score will be higher. Coaching: having someone who knows about the test, teach you about it.

A little history Sir Francis Galton (1884) – Was interested in heredity and had been working with identical twins. He wanted to measure differences between unrelated people. This was the first large scale systematic body of information of unrelated individuals. James Cattell. Met Galton and coined the term “mental test.” He attempted to measure intellect through sensory perception (like Wundt). Alfred Binet. Created the first real IQ test for the French government (in regards to school children). The test was for children and a student’s mental age should equal their age in years.

Binet only wanted to determine what a child’s performance level was, he did not care “why” or “how” that child performed as they did. Lewis Terman, started using Binet’s test. He found however that it did not work well for older adults. At Stanford University Terman revised the test and it became known as the Stanford-Binet. Terman, also began to believe that certain races were intellectually superiour to others and began to do research into Eugenics.

Charles Spearman: Generalized intelligence (“g”) Charles Spearman: Generalized intelligence (“g”). He found that people who did well on one certain part of the test, many times scored high overall. He began to feel that intelligence was not just talent in one thing, but that intelligence as a concept was a much more diffuse idea. Howard Gardener: Multiple intelligences. Gardener began to believe that individual talents were external expressions of IQ. Though he began with approximately four, his theory gained credibility when it became 7;Verbal, Mathematics, Kinesthetic, Music, Interpersonal, Intrapersonal, Visual.

What are IQ tests good for anyway? Detect organic brain dysfunction Can detect whether the test taker is lying Indicates level of knowledge at the time of test Indicates some aspects of skill level at the time of the test Heusen: (Swedish researcher) found that there is a 0.72 correlation between IQ as a child and IQ as an adult. High level of correlation. Anastasi: Children’s IQ level varies from age to age, and these changes are mostly due to environmental factors.

IQ IQ scores can drastically change (higher or lower) as the child develops – either faster or more slowly than the general population. Overlap hypothesis. You don’t have to relearn what you already know. This means that total IQ will (usually) always increase with time and age.

Ethics and Bias Any question can be biased as it is a product of the person who wrote it. (Cup/saucer question). Factors to consider: Cultural differences Group differences Language barriers Test group bias (Normative data)

Standardization (norming) Create a test Give test to a specific test group Remove questions that ALL got right AND wrong Re-Administer test again All participants should get a C (average) Now: Give your test to a non-specific test group Compare the NEW group’s score with the original group average. This is how all standardized tests run.

Standardized tests must be re-normed every 30 years or so. Weschler created the WAISC and WISC while he was working with homeless individuals. He found the Stanford-Binet’s total focus on verbal ability made the test almost useless with those who had very little education. He added a physical performance portion of the test: arranging blocks, picture completion, etc.

Follow up Cattell Crystallized IQ? Fluid IQ? Gardener Name the multiple intelligences and number Sternberg – Triarchic theory Component, experience, practical “How well an individual deals with environmental changes throughout their lifetime.”

So, what do you get? The problem with IQ tests is that there is no significant result from taking one. Diagnostic Labels: If you take a test once and are saddled with a “label” after that, it may help or hurt the individual’s performance later in life. Think “self fulfilling prophecy.” Low scorers may feel they will never improve. High scorers may (perhaps incorrectly) believe that few people can equal them.

What good can come of this? About the only positive that I can see is that if a student is doing very poorly in school (or at work) and is unable to increase their performance, then an IQ test might provide them with some insight as to their disability. But at what risk? How will this affect the person as they progress (or don’t progress).