Huge drop, obviously. The conclusion I came to is that intelligence tests are not always reliable. How could I possibly drop over 100 points? My Psych textbook (Psychology:Themes and Variations, Wayne Weiten) says IQ tests produce consistent results (p. 345), but this is obviously not the case when it comes to me. Was it just a fluke? A girl in 1st period got an IQ of 40 and she is in no way mentally retarded. My point is, although IQ testing has come along way, there is obviously work to be done still.
As for personality testing, my tests all seem to be accurate, but that's just my testing. I Googled free Psych tests because I was bored and I didn't feel like reading my Psychology textbook. (It was a compromise with myself.) It was all accurate: I'm an extrovert; I hate being alone; I love responsibility; I make decisions with my feelings; I'm very emotional and easily upset; I love working in groups. However, I don't know if it's just my results that are accurate.
As in all Science classes, there is still more to be discovered when it comes to Psychological testing. In 40 years when they are testing for learning disabilities or using personality tests to help high school students find good career paths, it will be much more effective, I presume. For now, that’s just not the case.
Article comments
1 - Joanne Huspek
Intelligence test scores are simply an aid, and I believe should not be taken as the be-all end-all. It doesn't measure everything, and it's not always accurate. Your score can change from day to day, and from year to year. I know people who are MENSA level who can barely keep their lives organized. One didn't know how to turn on a vacuum cleaner.
As a parent with two kids who where labeled learning disabled, if there is a wide discrepancy between grades and test scores, that is usually an indication of a disability, not of intelligence or lack of it.
I'm pretty sure you're much above an 18, Maddy.
2 - Rolf Marvin Bøe Lindgren
Maddy,
Great article! I’m excited that psychology is such a hit with you. The possibilities within psychology are many, and you seem to have already discovered that psychology is a lot more than just terhapy.
Intelligence testing is difficult to understand, even among experts, and I’m not certain " from your reflections - that you have the best information available. If your total score in the WAIS (Wechsler) is above 120 I don't really see how many of your subscores can actually be in the 90+ percentile.
Are you sure that the test you got 18 on really gave IQ scores? Scoring is a difficult subject, IQ tests give differrent scores according to their purpose. For example, 132 on the WAIS is the same as 150 on the RPM. They are both very good tests but for different purposes.
3 - Marcela
Of course IQ tests are not completely relieable, specially when their purpose is to MEASURE any kind of inteligence. But I think they can be really good at helping people find careers they would be good in.
4 - Robert M. Barga
Did you look at the average in your psyche class? Most tests have an average of 15, which would be about the same end result for you