Theories of Intelligence
Who would have been most enthusiastic about the value of a single intelligence test score as an index of an individual's mental capacities?
(A) Erikson
(B) Spearman
(C) Gardner
(D) Sternberg
(B) Spearman
The ratio of mental age to chronological age for a child of average intelligence is
(A) 1:1
(B) 1:15
(C) 1:25
(D) 1:50
(A) 1:1
A test author most interested in ensuring that individuals receive similar scores on a personality test every time they take it is attempting to increase which of the following?
(A) Validity
(B) Reliability
(B) Experimenter-expectancy effects
(D) Standardization
(B) Reliability
When completing a verbal aptitude test, members of an ethnic minority group are particularly likely to perform below their true ability levels if they believe that the test
(A) is a measure of emotional intelligence as well as academic intelligence.
(B) assesses their interests as well as their abilities.
(C) is biased against members of their own ethnic group.
(D) results in a distribution of scores that forms a bell-shaped curve.
(C) is biased against members of their own ethnic group.
Those who score above average on tests of mathematical aptitude are also likely to score above average on tests of verbal aptitude. According to Spearman, this best illustrates the importance of:
(A) predictive validity
(B) factor analysis
(C) the g factor
(D) reliability
(C) the g factor
A test that measures a student’s potential ability is
(A) an achievement test
(B) an aptitude test
(C) an intelligence test
(D) a personality inventory
(B) an aptitude test
On an intelligence test, the number of questions an individual answers correctly is meaningless without which of the following?
(A) Factor analysis
(B) Standardization
(C) g factor
(D) Predictive validity
(B) Standardization
A computer company wants to hire a large group of employees to work in a newly opened branch of the company. The human resources department determines that the most effective way to screen applicants would be the use of intelligence testing. Which of the following is the main reason that the implementation of this screening policy would be inappropriate?
(A) Intelligence tests can be subject to bias.
(B) Intelligence testing can be expensive and time consuming.
(C) Intelligence tests are only used to identify students who require educational services.
(D) Intelligence testing can be too complex to be useful.
(A) Intelligence tests can be subject to bias.
Sternberg believes there are three important categories of intelligence:
(A) analytical, creative, practical
(B) analytical, spatial, emotional
(C) practical, creative, emotional
(D) creative, analytical, interpersonal
(A) analytical, creative, practical
Which of the following is the best example of an aptitude test?
(A) A teacher gives a test in class every three weeks to see what students learned.
(B) A company tests applicants for a personality trait that is linked to better job performance.
(C) A teenager must earn a passing score on a written test to get their driver’s license.
(D) A football coach compares each player's leg strength before and after implementing a new conditioning program.
(B) A company tests applicants for a personality trait that is linked to better job performance.
A psychologist has just developed a new test that he hopes will be a good measure of intelligence. The psychologist got fellow content experts to look at the questions to confirm that they are the types of puzzles and problems that would provide an intellectual challenge and give insight into someone’s intellectual abilities. Unfortunately, when he distributes the test to a classroom of college students, it does not appear to perform similarly to existing measures of intelligence. The test does not predict student GPAs and in fact is better at predicting performance on a measure of anxiety than intelligence. Which of the following characteristics does the new intelligence test possess?
(A) Split-half reliability, because the odd items had the same rates of accuracy as the even items.
(B) Test-retest reliability, because the students performed the same each time they took the test.
(C) Construct validity, because the psychologist has demonstrated that the test measures what it is intended to measure.
(D) Predictive validity, because the test predicts future academic performance.
(C) Construct validity, because the psychologist has demonstrated that the test measures what it is intended to measure.
A devoted young father reads a news report that claims many people believe men are not as intelligent in how to properly care for their children. The young father has plans to care for his child that day.
Question
Which of the following can be predicted about his performance as a caretaker based on the concept of stereotype threat?
(A) The father will ignore the news reports because they do not apply to him.
(B) The father will experience increased resentment toward childcare.
(C) The father will experience increased anxiety and make mistakes as a caretaker.
(D) The father will develop an insecure attachment with his child.
(C) The father will experience increased anxiety and make mistakes as a caretaker.
According to Howard Gardner, someone who moves with fluidity and coordination (professional gymnast) has high _____ intelligence.
(A) Interpersonal
(B) Visual-Spatial
(C) Logical-Mathematical
(D) Bodily-Kinesthetic
(D) Bodily-Kinesthetic
A test that is labeled an achievement test is most likely to be given to
(A) predict an individual’s ability to succeed in a particular job
(B) allow a student to be exempted from a college course
(C) assess the mental age of a gifted eight-year-old
(D) investigate an individual’s cognitive style
(B) allow a student to be exempted from a college course
Dr. Crump is developing a new personality test that he hopes will measure personality factors similar to those measured by a Big Five personality inventory. His participants take the new personality test and the main Big Five inventory used in clinical settings. The next week the participants take the new personality test again. Dr. Crump finds that the participants in the study had similar scores each time they took the new personality test and that there is a weak positive correlation between the scores on the new personality test and the Big Five inventory. Dr. Crump is most likely to conclude that the new personality test has which of the following qualities?
(A) high reliability and low validity
(B) high reliability and high validity
(C) low reliability and high validity
(D) low reliability and moderate validity
(A) high reliability and low validity
Which of the following results of correlational studies implies that environment contributes to the determination of IQ?
(A) Correlations are higher for identical twins than for fraternal twins.
(B) Correlations are higher for children and their biological parents than for children and their adoptive parents.
(C) Correlations for two children in the same family are lower when one of the children is adopted than when both are the biological offspring of the parents.
(D) Correlations for children and their adoptive parents are statistically significant and positive.
(D) Correlations for children and their adoptive parents are statistically significant and positive.
A statistical procedure that identifies clusters of test items that seem to tap a common ability is called
(A) correlational measurement
(B) standardization
(C) factor analysis
(D) reliability assessment
(C) factor analysis
Mary has an IQ score within one standard deviation above the mean score. This indicates her score is best described as having which of the following qualities?
(A) high enough for Mary to be considered a genius
(B) higher than at least 75% of people who took the test
(C) within the middle 68% of people who took the test
(D) higher than exactly 93% of people who took the test
(C) within the middle 68% of people who took the test
A corporation created what they referred to as an “intelligence assessment” to give to people who are applying for jobs with their company, which sells medical equipment. The assessment asked questions about popular culture, sports, and historical events that occurred in the United States. Which of the following might explain why the assessment results did not give the company a diverse pool of final candidates?
(A) The assessment lacked reliability by only asking about United States cultural and historic topics.
(B) The assessment lacked validity by only asking about United States cultural and historic topics.
(C) The assessment lacked standardization by only asking about United States cultural and historic topics.
(D) The assessment lacked metacognition by only asking about United States cultural and historic topics.
(B) The assessment lacked validity by only asking about United States cultural and historic topics.
Intelligence tests have been used throughout history to purposefully discriminate against groups of people. Claims that minority groups have lower IQ scores because of genetic factors fail to consider which of the following?
(A) IQ tests are not valid measures of intelligence.
(B) IQ test scores are dependent on social factors such as educational opportunity and poverty.
(C) IQ tests only measure verbal skills, which might impact some groups due to language barriers.
(D) IQ tests are unreliable measures of intelligence.
(B) IQ test scores are dependent on social factors such as educational opportunity and poverty.