IQ Tests Effectively Measure Intelligence Essay

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To What Extent do IQ Tests Effectively Measure Intelligence?
Introduction
Albert Einstein, a famous theoretical physicist, once said that “the true sign of intelligence is not knowledge, but imagination.” While scholastic aptitude can play a large role in determining one’s intelligence, creativity is also a major factor. IQ tests, or intelligence quotient tests, are supposed to measure intelligence, but due to their ability to measure creativity, their accuracy is highly debated. According to Dan Hurley, award-winning science journalist, “20 to 50 percent of the variation in IQ is due to other factors, whether social, school or family-based” (Hurley 10). Due to this massive variation, IQ tests can often produce biased or flawed results. The
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In fact, according to Colmar, “An intellectual level that is considered to be within the range of intellectual disability, as measured on an IQ test, is two or more standard deviations below the mean, resulting in a level of 70 IQ points or lower” (Colmar et al. 179). A set standard such as this cannot effectively determine anything if outliers are present and in this case, many outliers may be present. The IQ test standard for determining whether an individual is disabled simply will not work in all cases and may cause many errors. When determining if a child is disabled, there is no space for error because if a disabled child does get over 70 IQ points, that child will not receive the proper care that he/she needs to treat that mental disability. Also, according to Suzanne Fitzgerald, a psychology professor at Cardiff University, “diagnosis of mental retardation is unreliable as different psychologists use different versions of IQ tests and comparisons should not be made across test versions” (Fitzgerald et al. 325). This shows how the inaccuracy of IQ tests can force psychologists to make errors in their diagnoses and make some potentially life-changing mistakes. Since IQ tests are so unreliable and do not effectively measure intelligence, doctors and psychologists are unable to reliably determine whether a child is mentally disabled or

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