The Cultural Bias in Intelligence Tests

Bibliography Brainmetrix.com. “Intelligence definition.” Brain Metrix. 2007. Web. 14 Jan. 2016. Breyer, Melissa, and 25 p. Which of the 8 kinds of intelligence do you have? MNN - Mother Nature Network, 13 Jan. 2016. Web. 13 Jan. 2016. Gariépy, Jean-François. What is intelligence ? 31 Dec. 2012. Web. 14 Jan. 2016. “Human intelligence | psychology.” Encyclopædia Britannica. N.p.: Encyclopædia Britannica, 7 May 2015. Web. 14 Jan. 2016. Inc, Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster’s School Dictionary. Springfield, MA: Merriam Webster,U.S., 9 Apr. 2015. Print. Kaufman, Scott Barry. What do IQ tests test? Interview with psychologist W. Joel Schneider. Scientific American Blog Network, n.d. Web. 20 Jan. 2016. Mann, Denise. “Does IQ test really measure intelligence?” WebMD. WebMD, n.d. Web. 20 Jan. 2016. McLennan community college university. “What is intelligence.ppt.” Mccu.org. n.d. Web. 14 Jan. 2016. Miller, Max, et al. What is intelligence? Big Think, 2 Sept. 2010. Web. 13 Jan. 2016. Muehlhauser, Luke. “What is intelligence? - machine intelligence research institute.” Analysis. Machine Intelligence Research Institute, 19 June 2013. Web. 14 Jan. 2016. “The Difference Between Intelligence and Common Sense.” Quora. 20 Jan. 2015. Web. 20 Jan. 2016. “The Three types of intelligence you need for success.” Psychology Today, 7 Oct. 2013. Web. 20 Jan. 2016. Citations, Quotes & Annotations Brainmetrix.com. “Intelligence definition.” Brain Metrix. 2007. Web. 14 Jan. 2016. (Brainmetrix.com) "While

There are a slew of tests that attempt to measure how intelligent human beings are. They all measure different aspects and those factors will be covered here. One of the misconceptions is that the tests measure inborn intelligence. Few of the activities are designed for that purpose. They actually measure a person’s interaction with the environment and what they have learned from that interaction. The most common tested aspect is critical thinking. Instead of straightforward questions, intelligence tests offer questions with a twist. It is assumed that the most intelligent people will see obvious flaws in the obvious answers (Steinberg & Williams, 2015). Some intelligence tests also measure reflexes, both mental and physical. The assumption is quick reaction times reflect an active brain and in the line of thinking, a more intelligent person.

This paper discusses the pros and cons of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS-III). First, important definitional, theoretical issues, including the nature of intelligence, a brief history, and pros and cons are discussed. Next, the development, reliability, validity, and assets and limitations of the WAIS-III are examined. This is followed by discussion of the meaning of IQ scores, use of successive level interpretation and cautions and guidelines for administration. Last, subtests, assessing special population groups, short forms, profile forms, and what a

The WISC-IV is a test of cognitive abilities that measures four global areas and combines them to provide a full-scale intelligence quotient. The four areas include Verbal Comprehension, Perceptual Reasoning, Working Memory, and Processing Speed. The Full Scale IQ (FSIQ) is derived from a combination of ten subtest scores and is considered the most representative estimate of global intellectual functioning. The results of the current test conducted on Leo Marcelynas indicate that his Full Scale IQ (FSIQ) is 101. It can be stated with 95% confidence that Leo’s FSIQ falls between 96-106, indicating that he is functioning in the Normative Average Range of intellectual ability. Given the consistency among his scores on Verbal

In order to determine whether THIC was an appropriate measure for assessing IQ, we need to establish first the congruence with guidelines of The British Psychological Society (BPS, 2009). The THIC yields no result when researching the approved Registered Tests database, therefore illustrates cearly that it was not a relevant test to administer. Furthermore, when considering using THIC, a specific test used

Each theory of intelligence has not only a different method of testing intelligence, but also a different definition of intelligence, which each creator ascribes to. Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scales (Terman, 1916), or IQ tests as they are commonly referred to as, are currently one of the most widely used tools for intelligence measurement, however, research suggests they are a poor predictor of future academic success for particular cultural groups (Gardner, 1993). In one of the largest neurocognitive-based intelligence studies performed to date, it was revealed through the observation of neuroimaging data that IQ scores alone were not likely to indicate a fundamental intellectual ability because intelligence is composed of multiple anatomically distinct components (Hampshire, Highfield, Parkin, & Owen, 2012). Considering this development, it would appear that IQ tests are only measuring one subsection of intelligence, located in the frontoparietal cortex (Gray, Chabris, & Braver, 2003; Hampshire, Highfield, Parkin, & Owen, 2012). In order to provide analogous statistics to base research upon, it is vital to create multifaceted, culturally sensitive measurements because cultures differ greatly in the emphasis they place on certain aspects of intelligence (Sternberg, Grigorenko, & Kidd, 2005).

An ongoing issue in the classroom that has gotten a lot of attention in the past couple of years is the cultural bias in standardized testing. On the surface, there are many issues with standardized testing; it stifles creativity, causes teachers to teach to the test, ignores the needs of individual students, and creates stress and anxiety for students. Going beyond this, these tests are unavoidably biased by social-class, ethnic, gender and other cultural differences. First off, students have many different experiences outside of the classroom and their educational potential is largely influenced by these experiences and circumstances. By conducting single test measurements in a uniform, high-stakes method, the educational system is jeopardizing

“Blacks still score below 75 percent of American whites on most standardized tests” (Jencks and Phillips). The belief that intelligence and aptitude are innate seems to be especially important in discussions of racial differences (Jencks and Phillips 6). White Americans score closer on IQ tests to other white populations across the globe than to the worldwide black average (Saletan 1). An important question that may come to mind is whether intelligence tests biased. Intelligence tests are likely to be culturally biased when a standardized test reflects what is learned through experience in a culture that does not regard to another race as highly (Young). For instance, if a standardized test result represented an ingroup preference exclusively than it may only measure a specific part of intelligence; for example the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale, WAIS, is more verbal while the Raven's Progressive Matrices, RPM, is more visual (Young). This may cause a majority of individuals with autism to do better on the RPM due to autistic students connecting with images rather than words. Young has stated that intelligence tests that only focus on certain neurological criterias and are not well indicators of intelligence due to it not equally indicating all types of intellect. Yet a majority of psychologists now agree that intelligence tests measure developed

Differences have been observed in mean IQ levels for racial/ethnic groups, as measured by intelligence tests

Standardized cognitive and intellectual assessments allows researchers to assess individuals on their academic abilities (Bordonaro, 2001). Nevertheless, many researchers have revealed that the gaps within cognitive and intellectual assessment may be due to cultural bias (Schellenburg, 2004) As many standard intellectual and cognitive assessments have been developed for a dominant group such as the western culture. These intellectual and cognitive assessments are then utilized on other cultures which leads to bias and invalid research (Mushquash & Bova, 2000). Although, other factors such as development is considered cognitive behaviour is predominately determined by culture (Cole 1975, Davidson & Freebody, 1986; Davidson & Klich 1984; Davidson

IQ tests can be considered biased measures of intelligence, as there are many factors that have to deal with it. Even though IQ test are total fairness it all depends on a person’s social interaction rate. For example, if a test taker comes from a third world country where education is not available vs. a test taker here the scores will range. Bias is present when a test score has implications that relevant showing the portrayal of the subgroup of test takers. It often has to do with social viewpoint and knowledge about the world.

How is intelligence measured? How is it possible to just have one way to measure intelligence? Is there really only one way to measure every individual’s intelligence? According to psychologists Howard Gardner and Robert Sternberg there is. Gardner and Sternberg have developed two different theories to do so. Howard Gardner’s theory of intelligence is the way in which one carries out life goals. Gardner chose eight abilities that held to meet criteria: linguistic (speak and write well), logical-mathematical (use logical and mathematical skills to solve problems such as scientific quotations), spatial (think and reason about objects in three dimensional space), musical (preform, understand and enjoy music), bodily-kinesthetic (manipulate

There is a relationship between intelligence and culture because intelligence is culturally shaped and defined and some cultures support and identify it as very vital in the context of social and ecological aspects. In the early years, there was a bias towards intelligence tests because they used English language and culture. The formation of Wesler Adult Intelligence Scale, Fourth Addition (WAIS,IV) in 2008 by David Wesler was meant to minimise the bias. According to Westen, Burton and Kowalski (2006), intelligence assists human beings to take control of their lives and it varies cross culturally because the power dynamics differ in each society and this leads to differences in behaviour and line of thinking. These authors describe intelligence as multifaceted, functional and can be defined by culture because it is universal and studying intelligence using different culture as a sample that can be used to question Western ideas about intelligence with some emphasis on the assessment of skills and abilities using culturally appropriate methods (Benson, 2003)

The WAIS-IV is an assessment designed to measure cognitive functioning and intelligence in adults. The WAIS-IV generates composite, index, and subtests scores based on performance on verbal, non-verbal, processing speed, and working memory tasks. These scores reflect the individual’s performance at the time of testing and can be predictive of future functioning within a confidence interval (CI) of 95%. The composite full scale IQ score is a global representation of the individual’s functioning, the index scores represent their ability on a specific grouping of tasks, and the subtests scores indicate their ability within the specific cognitive functions. The composite and index scores have a mean of 100 and a standard deviation of 15; the

Gianna’s overall cognitive ability fell within the Average Range (Full Scale IQ of 102; 55th percentile). This indicates that Gianna performed as well as or better than 55 percent of the individuals of her age. The FSIQ is derived from a combination of seven subtest scaled scores and is generally considered to be the most representative estimate of global intellectual functioning on