1. Why do cultural differences in defining intelligence create challenges for developing fair intelligence tests?
A. Historical Efforts to Define and Measure Intelligence
1. What did Sir Francis Galton believe about the heritability of intelligence and how did this bias influence his test results?
2. What is the g-factor and how did Charles Spearman's discovery of positive correlations between different intelligence measures lead to this concept?
3. What is factor analysis and how does it help identify the relationship between specific skills and general intelligence?
B. Contemporary Intelligence Research and Theories
1. How does Howard Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences differ from traditional intelligence tests and what are the main criticisms of his theory?
2. How does Robert Sternberg's triarchic theory of intelligence differ from Gardner's approach to categorizing intelligence?
A. Early Intelligence Tests
1. What was the purpose of the Binet-Simon intelligence scale and how did it introduce the concept of mental age?
2. How did Binet's concept of 'mental orthopedics' represent a shift away from Galton's view of intelligence as purely genetic?
3. What modifications did Lewis Terman make to the Binet-Simon scale and what did his longitudinal study of high-IQ individuals reveal?
4. What is the IQ formula created by William Stern and what does a score of 100 represent?
B. Wechsler Intelligence Scales
1. Why did David Wechsler believe the Stanford-Binet test was incomplete and what components did he add to his intelligence scales?
2. What specific performance tasks does the Wechsler test include and what cognitive abilities do they measure?
3. How did Wechsler change the way intelligence scores are reported and why is this method still used today?
A. Standardization and Norms
1. What is standardization and why is it essential for making fair comparisons between test takers?
2. What are test norms and how do norm-referenced tests allow comparison of individual scores to a sample group?
3. What is percentile rank and how does it describe an individual's performance relative to others?
B. Validity
1. What is validity and what are the differences between content validity and face validity?
2. What is a construct and why are constructs like intelligence more difficult to define operationally than physical characteristics?
3. How do construct validity, concurrent validity, and predictive validity differ in assessing the quality of intelligence tests?
C. Reliability
1. What is test-retest reliability and what does a high correlation coefficient indicate about an assessment?
2. What is split-half reliability and how is it measured within a single testing session?
3. How well do IQ tests predict school performance and what factors limit their validity in predicting job success?
A. Normal Distribution
1. What are the three key components of the normal distribution of IQ scores and what percentages fall within each standard deviation?
2. What is a z-score and how does it describe an individual's position relative to the mean in a normal distribution?
3. How can you calculate percentile rank using the normal distribution of IQ scores?
1. Why do minority groups often score lower on intelligence tests and how does stereotype threat explain this performance gap?
A. Stereotype Threat and Stereotype Lift
1. What is stereotype threat and how does it differ from stereotype lift in affecting test performance?
2. What evidence demonstrates that gender differences in math performance are related to stereotype threat rather than ability?
B. Developing Fair Assessments
1. What are socioculturally responsive assessments and what types of test items create disadvantages for certain groups?
2. Why might reporting intelligence scores as a range rather than a single number be more useful and fair?
1. What is the difference between quantitative and qualitative measures of intelligence and why do qualitative measures consider environmental and cultural contexts?
A. The Flynn EffectโGenerational Changes
1. What is the Flynn effect and what are possible explanations for the steady increase in IQ scores across generations?
2. Why is it important to renorm intelligence tests each year and what would happen if tests were not renormed?
B. Scores Within and Between Groups
1. What does research show about the range of IQ scores within racial and ethnic groups compared to differences between groups?
2. How do personal bias and confirmation bias influence the interpretation of IQ scores?
3. How can sociocultural biases in test items and their interpretation lead to systematic inequalities in education and employment?
C. Factors That Negatively Influence Intelligence Scores
1. How do poverty and malnutrition affect brain development and cognitive functioning, particularly during early childhood?
2. What environmental stressors associated with poverty can negatively impact IQ scores?
3. How do educational inequities and limited access to enriching environments affect cognitive development and intelligence scores?
D. Controversial Uses of Intelligence Test Scores
1. How have intelligence tests been used historically as gatekeepers in military, employment, education, and immigration contexts?
2. What ethical and social concerns have been raised about using intelligence test scores to make high-stakes decisions?
3. What was the significance of Henry Goddard's testing of immigrants at Ellis Island and what does it reveal about confirmation bias?
1. How do academic achievement and intelligence differ in terms of stability, scope, and the factors that influence them?
A. Assessment Measures
1. What is the difference between achievement tests and aptitude tests and what does each measure?
2. How can aptitude test results help indicate a person's potential vocational or professional direction?
B. Fixed versus Growth Mindsets
1. What is a fixed mindset and how does it relate to learned helplessness and limited academic progress?
2. How does a growth mindset differ from a fixed mindset and what role does perseverance play in academic success?
3. According to Carol Dweck's research, why might growth mindset be more important to success than intelligence itself?
achievement tests
aptitude tests
chronological age
construct validity
discrimination
educational inequities
fixed mindset
Flynn effect
g
growth mindset
intelligence Quotient (IQ)
intelligence test
mental age
personal bias
poverty
predictive validity
psychometric principle
reliability
socioculturally responsive
split-half reliability
standardized tests
stereotype lift
stereotype threat
systemic issue
test-retest reliability
validity