Why IQ tests do not test intelligence The task of trying to quantify a person’s intelligence has been a goal of psychologists since before the beginning of this century. TheBinet-Simon scales were first proposed in 1905 in Paris, France andvarious sorts of tests have been evolving ever since. One of theimportant questions that always comes up regarding these tools is whatare the tests really measuring? Are they measuring a person’sintelligence? Their ability to perform well on standardized tests? Orjust some arbitrary quantity of the person’s IQ? When examining thesituations around which these tests are given and the content of thetests themselves, it becomes apparent that however useful the tests maybe for standardizing a group’s intellectual ability, they are not a goodindicator of intelligence.To issue a truly standardized test, the testing environment should bethe same for everyone involved. If anything has been learned from thepsychology of perception, it is clear that a person’s environment has agreat deal to do with their cognitive abilities. Is the lightflickering? Is the paint on the walls an unsettling shade? Is thetemperature too hot or too cold? Is the chair uncomfortable? Or in theworst case, do they have an illness that day? To test a person’s mind,it is necessary to utilize their body in the process. If everyone’sbody is placed in different conditions during the testing, how is itexpected to get standardized results across all the subjects? Becauseof this assumption that everyone will perform equally independent oftheir environment, intelligence test scores are skewed and cannot beviewed as standardized, and definitely not as an example of a person’sintelligence.It is obvious that a person’s intelligence stems from a variety oftraits. A few of these that are often tested are reading comprehension,vocabulary, and spatial relations??" But this is not all that goes into...
