The Measurement of Intelligence through IQ Tests Can intelligence be measured? Does an IQ test actually measure a person’s intelligence? Does a high score indicate a genius? Does a low score indicate stupidity or merely ignorance? These questions have been asked over and over again by psychiatrists and scientists alike, but to date there are no clear answers. These questions cannot be answered without first defining what is meant by the term intelligence. Once intelligence has been defined then it should be easy to answer these questions; however, multiple definitions of the word tend to lead to further confusion. In a 1921 symposium entitled “Intelligence and Its Measurement”, psychiatrists were asked to define intelligence and their answers varied greatly. One described intelligence as “equivalent to the capacity to learn.” Other definitions included “the ability to adapt adequately to relatively new situations”, “the capacity to learn or profit from experience”, and “the knowledge that an individual possesses.” And one stated that there was no simple definition to the word because “intelligence involves two factors- the capacity for knowledge and knowledge possessed” (Sternberg & Detterman, 1986, p.39-40). Dictionaries add still more definitions: Funk & Wagnall’s defines intelligence as “The faculty of perceiving and comprehending meaning; mental quickness; active intellect; understanding” , while Webster’s defines it as “the ability to learn or understand or to deal with new or trying situations; the skilled use of reason.” While some of these definitions are similar, none of them are exactly the same. The definition of intelligence becomes even more complicated when one considers the work of Howard Gardner. Gardner claims that intelligence can not be defined with one definition because intelligence is not one thing. Gardner purports that there are eight different categories of intelligence: musical, bodily-kinesthetic, logical-mathematical, linguistic, spatial, interpersonal, intrapersonal, and naturalist. He is currently considering adding a ninth category of intelligence: existential (Carvin). Gardner believes that all people excel in at least one category of intelligence. However, he cautions teachers using the multiple intelligence approach in the classroom: “Do not label kids as ‘spatial, but not linguistic’ or, for that... ... middle of paper ... ... when they arrive the store is out of bread. The children are then asked what they would do with points only being scored for the answer of going to another store; however, for children living in large urban ghetto areas the most popular answer has traditionally been to go home. Researchers argue that, considering the environment that these children live in, going home would be a much more intelligent decision than attempting to go to another store (Lawler, 1978, p.34). Can intelligence be measured? Does an IQ test actually measure a person’s intelligence? The answers all depend on who you ask. Bibliography: References Block, N. & Dworkin, G. (1976). The iq controversy. New York: Random House. Carvin, A. EdWeb: Exploring technology and school reform. [On-Line]. Available: http://edweb.gsn.org/edref.mi.intro.html Durie, R. The building tool room: an interview with Howard Gardner. [On-Line]. Available: http://www.newhorizons.org/trm_gardner.html Lawler, J. (1978). Iq, heritability, and racism. New York: International Publishers. Sternberg, R. & Detterman, D. (1986). What is intelligence. New Jersey: Ablex Publishing Corporation.
Curtis McGhee was charged for the murder of John Schweer who worked as a security guard at a car dealership. Even though there were various suspects after the crime McGhee was charged based on a false statement, which was made by Kevin Hughes. Kevin Hughes was under police investigation for a stolen car ring, however while he was under police investigations the detectives pressured and instructed Hughes to confess, and Hughes stated that he, Harrington, and McGhee attempted to steal a car where Schweer used to work, and when he came to check Harrington shot him with a shotgun.
Howard Gardner’s theory contains eight main multiple intelligence. As the years have progressed there have taken one out and is left with the main seven. These seven are: Linguistic, Mathematical, Spatial, bodily, Musical, Interpersonal, and Intrapersonal. These are found in everyone; however, each person will excel in one or two. Once teachers can determine what intelligence the students will exceed on and teach to their strengths the student will learn much more.
Intelligence tests have been developed by scientists as a tool to categorize army recruits or analyze school children. But still discussing what intelligence is, academics have a difficult time defining what intelligence tests should measure. According to the American researcher Thorndike, intelligence is only that what intelligence tests claim it is (Comer, Gould, & Furnham, 2013). Thus, depending on what is being researched in the test and depending on the scientist’s definition of intelligence the meaning of the word intelligence may vary a lot. This essay will discuss what intelligence is in order to be able to understand the intelligence theories and aims of intelligence tests.
The IQ test is an arcane yet widely-accepted method for attempting to quantify the intelligence of human beings. It uses a series of pattern, arithmetic, or vocabulary-centred questions to produce a result in a numerical score. These scores indicate the level of ‘intelligence’ demonstrated with a score of 100 regarded as displaying average intelligence – 70 or below indicating developmental delays, while a score of 130 and above is considered as especially bright. Contrary to popular belief, the 100 score is most definitely not a constant result, IQ tests are frequently adjusted to reflect their time, and the average is always set at 100. This means if an individual takes an IQ test in the present moment and scores a 100 but later takes a test designed a couple of decades earlier they will most certainly score well above 100. The legitimacy of the IQ test has been the subject of intense debate within the scientific community for some time. Those who oppose its use argue its limitations in calculating real intelligence and the incline to which the tests are bias in terms of educational and cultural standpoint. This essay will discuss early uses of the I.Q test and where it now stands on the educational platform as an ‘accurate’ measure of intelligence.
Intelligence is, according to the Oxford dictionary, “the ability to acquire and apply knowledge and skills”. Flowers for Algernon, a short story, talks about Charlie who struggles with being mentally retarded, but what he lacks in the brain department, he makes up for in the emotional department. The excerpt from The Future of the Mind by Michio Kaku, is about Einstein and his brain, and the surprising fact that Einstein's brain is average and has only slight differences with other people’s brains. An argumentative article, Is Personal Intelligence Important?, by John D. Mayer, Ph. D, is his explanation of the intelligences and why they are important. There are multiple types of Intelligence, despite popular
Most researchers believe that we are born with a certain intelligence or potential intelligence. They also believe that the intelligence we are born with is difficult to change. Psychologists use short-answer tests to assess one’s intelligence (Gardner papers). It was believed that intelligence was a single inherited thing. Human beings start out initially as a blank slate and could be trained to learn anything, provided that it was presented in an appropriate way (Multiple Intelligences and Education). Currently an “increasing number of researchers believe the opposite. Gardner defined intelligence as: “the ability to create an effective product or offer a service that is valued in culture; a set ...
Intelligence by definition is “the ability to acquire and apply knowledge and skills” (Oxford Dictionary, 2014). However, many psychologists argue that there is no standard definition of ‘intelligence’, and there have been many different theories over time as psychologists try to find better ways to define this concept (Boundless 2013). While some believe in a single, general intelligence, others believe that intelligence involves multiple abilities and skills. Another largely debated concept is whether intelligence is genetically determined and fixed, or whether is it open to change, through learning and environmental influence. This is commonly known as the nature vs. nurture debate.
In psychology intelligence if often debated, but there are many different views on what intelligence is. Some say you have to have a wide range of abilities. Other opinions are intelligence is strictly based on upon the knowledge of subjects. For example Charles Spearman and Louis Thurstone had different views on the topic.
Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligence focuses more on how numerical expressions of human intelligence are not a full and accurate depiction of people’s abilities (McFarlane, 2011). He includes and describes eight intelligences that are based on skills and abilities that are valued within different cultures. The eight intelligences include visual-spatial (e.g. sailor navigating with no navigational systems), verbal-linguistic (e.g. poets, writers, orators, and communicators), bodily-kinesthetic (e.g. dancers, athletes, surgeons, craftspeople), logical-mathematical (e.g. mathematicians and logicians), interpersonal(e.g. salespeople, teachers, clinicians, politicians, and religious leaders), musical (e.g. musicians and
Since the introduction of internet in the 1990’s, its importance worldwide has always grown tremendously. From the first email send to the domination of Facebook and other social media websites, it has changed the way people communicate. The use of social media is increasingly becoming the preferred way people share their daily activities, ideas and knowledge and that is why it’s the most talked about and used platform. Many companies are encouraging their employees to use various social media platforms and engage online for office productivity, posting opinions and presenting their thoughts. Corporations realize that Social Media tools such as blogs, forums, podcasts and social networking websites makes internal communications faster, more convenient and effective. Social media is a low-cost, high-impact tool that can also complement and reinforce your existing communications efforts. It gives a new dimension to internal communications in many ways: building relationship with employees, leads to diverse thinking and innovation, and reduce costs and Increase Productivity. Social media has impacted positively in the business world, but its downside has impacted teens in high school, with issues such as cyber bullying, and people using Facebook and twitter to get over their boredom and research proving that the more they use social networking websites the more envious they feel.
In 1983, Howard Gardner a Harvard professor proposed the theory that individual can have multiple ways of learning and processing information. The multiple intelligences consist of 9 different ways and these include: verbal-linguistic, logical-mathematical, visual-spatial, existential, musical, naturalistic, bodily-kinesthetic, interpersonal, and intrapersonal. Every individual has a different amount of each intelligence but each intelligence is at a varying level. With the help of a multiple intelligences assessment, I found that my top three multiple intelligences are Intrapersonal, logical, and interpersonal. Within his research Gardner says that “Intrapersonal intelligence refers to people’s ability to recognize and assess those same characteristics
When a person utters the word “intelligence,” people tend to think of a genius like Albert Einstein developing some obscure equation that the great majority of the population will never understand. The problem with the definition of intelligence is that people relate intelligence to words like “genius” which require intelligence but do not have the same definition as intelligence. Often, people try to use related words to define intelligence, but these words are unable to define intelligence since many are only different levels of intelligence. While many definitions try to encompass the meaning of intelligence and various definitions describe a small part of intelligence, no definition completely explains intelligence, because intelligence is a concept that is understood only after realizing that intelligence is based on three basic concepts: logic, growth, and emotion. Although many people believe that humans are the only creatures capable of intelligence, other animals exhibit intelligence and are capable of further demonstrate the complex concept of intelligence.
The question of how to define intelligence is not new. Psychologists have been working for years to determine a way to categorize, measure, and define intelligence, and there are several theories that have stood out. The first widely known theory was developed by the British psychologist Charles Spearman, who was born in 1863. After conducting tests that measured subjects' mental abilities, "he concluded that intelligence is general cognitive ability that could be measured and numerically expressed" (Cherry). His theory is known as general intelligence. The "dictionary.com" definitions of intelligence include the "capacity for learning, reasoning, understanding, and similar forms of mental activity; aptitude in grasping truths, relationships, facts,...
There are different types of communication (verbal, nonverbal, paralinguistic). Verbal communication is communicating with words. For instance, an individual speaks to another at a business meeting regarding profit margins. Second, nonverbal communication is communicating without the use of words but through gesture, body language, facial expression and eye contact (Baron, Branscombe, Byrne). Also these physical expressions can provide powerful and valuable information about others’ current feelings and reactions without the need of words. Lastly paralinguistic is defined as the use of emotional expression, gestures, and the location of the body in relation to the other's body, eye contact, and level of voice instead of verbally expressing these cues (Triandis). Additionally, paralinguistic is also known as paralanguage as a way to modify or nuance meaning, or convey emotion, with the use of pitch, volume, and intonation (Triandis). For instance, as described by Triandis’ article Culture and Communication, “in Bulgaria and south India a nod means "no,” and a shake of the head, means "yes".” It’s interesting how Triandis describes the amount of difficulty it was to compre...
Howard Gardner, a professor at Harvard, introduced his theory of multiple intelligences in 1983. Multiple intelligence’s is a theory about the brain that says human beings are born with single intelligence that cannot be changed, and is measurable by a psychologist. Gardner believes that there are eight different intelligences in humans. The eight are verbal linguistic, visual spatial, bodily kinesthetic, mathematical logic, musical, intrapersonal, interpersonal, and naturalist. Understanding these intelligence’s will help us to design our classroom and curriculum in a way that will appeal to all of our students. We might also be able to curve discipline problems by reaching a student in a different way. One that will make more sense to them and more enjoyable. We can include all of the intelligences in lessons to accommodate all of the students’ different learning styles at once. By reaching each students intelligence we can assume that a student will perform better which, could mean students retaining more important information. A students learning style can also help lead them into a more appropriate career direction. As a teacher you can also learn your own personal learning style or intelligence to help improve the way you learn and teach.