The concept of "intelligence quotient" was introduced by the German psychologist William Stern. He used IQ as an acronym for the term Intelligenz-Quotient - intelligence quotient. IQ was a score obtained from a set of standardized tests administered by a psychologist to measure intelligence.
Pioneers of Mind Research
At first, psychologists doubted that the human mind could be measured, much less accurately. While interest in measuring intelligence goes back thousands of years, the first IQ test has only recently appeared. In 1904, the French government asked the psychologist Alfred Binet to help determine which students were most likely to have difficulty in school. The need to establish the intelligence of schoolchildren arose so that they could all receive compulsory primary education. Binet asked his colleague Theodore Simon to help him design a test that would focus on practical issues like memory, attention and problem solving, things kids don't learn in school. Some answered moredifficult questions than their age group, and therefore, based on observational data, the now classical concept of mental age has emerged. The result of the work of psychologists - the Binet-Simon scale - became the first standardized IQ test.
By 1916, Stanford psychologist Lewis Terman had adapted the Binet-Simon scale for use in the United States. The modified test was called the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale and became the standard intelligence test in the United States for several decades. Stanford - Beene uses a number known as IQ - intelligence quotient to represent individual scores.
How to calculate intelligence?
Intelligence quotient was originally determined by dividing the mental age of the person taking the test by their chronological age, and multiplying the quotient by 100. It goes without saying that this only works (or works best) for children. For example, a child with a mental age of 13.2 and a chronological age of 10 has an IQ of 132 and is eligible to enter Mensa (13.2 ÷ 10 x 100=132).
During World War I, the United States Army developed several tests to select recruits for specific jobs. The Army Alpha was a written test, while the Beta was for illiterate recruits.
This and other IQ tests were also used to test new immigrants arriving in the US from Ellis Island. Their findings have been used to fabricate false generalizations.about the "surprisingly low intelligence" of immigrants from southern Europe and Jews. These results in 1920 led to proposals by the "racially motivated" psychologist Goddard and others to Congress to impose restrictions on immigration. Despite the fact that the tests were only in English, and the vast majority of immigrants did not understand it, the United States government deported many thousands of deserving people who were labeled as "unfit" or "undesirable." And this happened a decade before Nazi Germany started talking about eugenics.
Psychologist David Wexler was unhappy with what he thought were the limited Stanford-Binet tests. The main reason for this was the single score, its emphasis on time limits, and the fact that the test was designed specifically for children, and therefore not suitable for adults. As a result, during the 1930s, Wexler developed a new test that was known as the Wexler-Belview Intelligence Scale. The test was subsequently revised and became known as the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale, or WAIS. Instead of one overall assessment, the test created an overall picture of the subject's strengths and weaknesses. One advantage of this approach is that it also provides useful information. For example, high scores in some areas and low scores in others are indicative of specific learning disabilities.
WAIS was psychologist Robert Wechsler's first test, while the WISC (Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children) and the Wechsler Preschool Intelligence Scale (WPPSI) were developed later. Adult version sincehas been revised three times since then: WAIS-R (1981), WAIS III (1997) and WAIS-IV in 2008.
Unlike tests based on chronological and mental age scales and standards, as in the case of Stanford-Binet, all versions of WAIS are calculated by comparing the test person's score with data from other subjects of the same age group. The average IQ score (worldwide) is 100 with 2/3 of the scores in the "normal" range of 85 to 115. The WAIS norms have become the standard in IQ testing and are therefore used by the Eysenck and Stanford-Binet tests, with the exception that its standard deviation is not 15, but 16. Cattell's test has a deviation of 23.8 - it often gives very flattering IQs, which can mislead the uninformed.
High IQ - high intelligence?
The IQ for the gifted is determined using special tests that provide psychologists with a lot of useful information. Many of them have an average score of 145-150, and a full range between 120 and 190. The test is not designed for scores below 120, and more than 190 scores are very difficult to interpolate, although it is possible.
Paul Kooijmans from the Netherlands is credited as the founder of upper range IQ tests, and he is the creator of most of the original, and now classic, tests of this type. He also founded and administers the super-high IQ societies Glia, Giga, and Grail. Among the most famous and popular Kooijmans tests are the Genius Test, the Nemesis Test and themultiple choice of Kooijmans . Paul's presence, influence and participation is a must, it's an integral part of the spirit of ultra-high IQ tests and its communities at large. Other classic IQ test gurus are Ron Hoeflin, Robert Lato, Laurent Dubois, Mislav Predavec and Jonathon Wye.
There are different types of thinking that manifest differently at different levels. People have different skills and levels of intelligence: verbal, typical, spatial, conceptual, mathematical. But there are also different ways to manifest them - logical, lateral, convergent, linear, divergent, and even inspirational and ingenious.
Standard and Enhanced IQ tests reveal the general intelligence factor; but in high-level tests it is defined in different ways.
High IQ scores are often talked about as the IQs of geniuses, but what do these numbers really mean and how do they add up? What IQ score is a sign of genius?
- High IQ is any score above 140.
- Genius IQ is over 160.
- Great genius - score equal to or greater than 200 points.
High IQ is directly related to academic success, but does it have an impact on success in life in general? How much luckier are geniuses than people with lower IQs? Some experts believe that compared to other factors, including emotional intelligence, intelligence quotient matters less.
IQ score breakdown
So, how exactly are they interpretedIQ scores? The average IQ test score is 100. 68% of IQ test results fall within the standard deviation of the mean. This means that most people have an IQ between 85 and 115.
- Under 24 points: profound dementia.
- 25-39 points: severe mental disability.
- 40–54 points: mild dementia.
- 55-69 points: mild mental disability.
- 70–84 points: borderline mental disorder.
- 85-114 points: average intelligence.
- 115-129 points: above average.
- 130-144 points: moderately gifted.
- 145-159 points: highly gifted.
- 160-179 points: exceptional talent.
- more than 179 points: profound giftedness.
What does IQ mean?
When talking about intelligence tests, IQ is called "gifted scores". What do they represent in assessing IQ? To understand this, it is important to first understand testing in general.
Today's IQ tests are based largely on original tests developed in the early 1900s by French psychologist Alfred Binet to identify students in need of extra help.
Based on his research, Binet developed the concept of mental age. Children in some age groups quickly answered questions that were usually answered by older children - their mental age exceeded chronological age. Binet's measurements of intelligence were based on averagesabilities of children of a certain age group.
IQ tests are designed to measure a person's ability to solve problems and reason. The IQ score is a measure of fluid and crystallized intelligence. The scores show how well the test was done compared to other people in that age group.
Understanding IQ
The distribution of IQ scores follows a Bell curve, a bell-shaped curve whose peak corresponds to the largest number of test scores. The bell then descends on each side, with scores below average on one side and above average on the other.
The average is equal to the average score and is calculated by adding all the results and then dividing them by the total number of points.
Standard deviation is a measure of variability in a population. A low standard deviation means that most of the data points are very close to the same value. A high standard deviation indicates that the data points tend to be farther from the mean. In IQ testing, the standard deviation is 15.
IQ increases
IQ increases with every generation. This phenomenon is called the Flynn effect, named after researcher Jim Flynn. Since the 1930s, when standardized tests became widespread, researchers have noted a steady and significant increase in test scores in people around the world. Flynn suggested that this increaseis about improving our ability to solve problems, think abstractly, and use logic.
According to Flynn, past generations mostly de alt with the concrete and specific problems of their immediate environment, while modern people think more about abstract and hypothetical situations. Not only that, but approaches to learning have changed drastically over the past 75 years, and more people tend to do knowledge work.
What do the tests measure?
IQ tests measure logic, spatial imagination, verbal reasoning, and visual ability. They are not intended to measure knowledge in specific subject areas, as an intelligence test is not something that can be learned in order to improve one's score. Instead, these tests assess the ability to use logic to solve problems, recognize patterns, and quickly make connections between information.
Although it is common to hear that prominent figures such as Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking have IQs of 160 or higher, or that some presidential candidates have specific IQs, these numbers are merely estimates. In most cases, there is no evidence that these well-known individuals have ever taken a standardized IQ test, let alone made their results public.
Why is the GPA 100?
Psychometrists use a process known as standardization to compare and interpret IQ scores. This process is carried out by conducting a test on a representative sample and using its results to create standards or norms against which individual scores can be compared. Because the median score is 100, professionals can quickly compare individual scores to the median to determine if they are in a normal distribution.
Grading systems can vary from one publisher to another, although many tend to follow the same grading system. For example, on the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale and on the Stanford-Binet Test, scores in the range of 85–115 are considered “average.”
What exactly do tests measure?
Intelligence quotient tests are designed to assess crystallized and fluid mental abilities. Crystallized includes knowledge and skills acquired throughout life, and mobile - the ability to reason, solve problems and comprehend abstract information.
Floating intelligence is thought to be independent of learning and tends to decline in adulthood. Crystallized is directly related to learning and experience and is constantly increasing over time.
Intelligence test performed by licensed psychologists. There are various types of tests, many of which include a range of subtests designed to measure math ability, language skills, memory, reasoning skills, and processing speed. Their scores are then combined to form a total IQ score.
Important to notethat while average, low, and genius IQs are often spoken of, there is no single test for intelligence. Many different tests are used today, including the Stanford-Binet, the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale, the Eysenck test, and the Woodcock-Johnson cognitive tests. Each differs in what and how it is evaluated, and how the results are interpreted.
What is considered a low IQ?
IQ equal to or below 70 is considered low. In the past, this IQ was considered the benchmark for mental retardation, an intellectual disability characterized by significant cognitive impairment.
Today, however, IQ alone is not used to diagnose intellectual disability. Instead, the criterion for this diagnosis is low IQ with evidence that these cognitive limitations existed before the age of 18 and involved two or more adaptive areas such as communication and self-help.
About 2.2% of all people have an IQ score below 70.
So what does it mean to have an average IQ?
IQ level may be a good general measure of reasoning and problem solving ability, but many psychologists suggest that tests don't reveal the whole truth.
Among the few things they fail to measure are practical skills and talents. A person with an average IQ may be a great musician, artist, singer, or mechanic. Psychologist Howard Gardner developed the theory of multiple intelligences,designed to address this shortcoming.
In addition, the researchers found that IQ can change over time. A study of the intelligence of adolescents with a gap of 4 years gave results that varied by 20 points.
IQ tests also do not measure curiosity and how well a person understands and controls emotions. Some experts, including writer Daniel Goleman, suggest that emotional intelligence (EQ) may be even more important than IQ. Researchers have found that a high IQ can actually help people in many areas of life, but does not guarantee success in life.
So you don't need to worry about the lack of genius, since the vast majority of people are not geniuses. Just as a high IQ does not guarantee success, an average or low IQ does not guarantee failure or mediocrity. Other factors such as hard work, resilience, perseverance and overall attitude are important pieces of the puzzle.
