Have you ever taken an IQ test?

[agent]

My wife, whom btw has been cynical about my med school desires to say the least, made me take an IQ test for the first time last night.

I'm 25 years old and had never done this before. It was thru an educational website cant remember the address, but anway, I only had 12 minutes for 32 questions.

She took the same test. She scored a 100 (average)

and I scored a 114. (above)

So I'm wondering if anyone else has taken an IQ test and how relevant is your score to your grades and or ability to suceed in pre-med..?

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[Cambrian]

I took the same test. I think IQ tests in general and that one specifically are subjective. Don't take them too seriously. According to the test, I have an IQ of 146, which I think is BS because I know I am much dumber than that.

 

[agent]

well congrats genious!

anyway, i didnt think i did too bad for never taking one before.

 

[Samoa]

It's all about motivation. My IQ was off the scale (the upper end), and I nearly flunked out of college.

 

[Doctor Octopus]

I've scored anywhere from 110 to 150 on various IQ tests over the years. These things are not very reliable, if you ask me.

 

[Curci]

The tests available online and in books are just for fun and do not accurately measure a person's IQ. The actual "IQ test" is something that only a psychologist can administer, and it takes quite a few hours to complete the test. They keep the test under lock and key too. The reason for the secrecy is that, if the questions and answers were leaked, it would severely compromise the integrity of the test, as you could imagine.

That's what they taught us in my Intro to Psych class, anyway. Is there anybody out there who knows if this is really the case?

 

[loomis]

the tests are very sketchy to say the least. i did some research on the validity of IQ tests for while in grad school (psych) and we found that it's not very reliable. Also, you can be easily "coached" to crush the test (do a google search on Justin Chapman, the so called 6 year old genius who actually memorized the IQ test answers). People who take the test each year get higher and higher scores (average ~11 point gain), even after factoring out the "age" adjustment in the test!

So to agent....keep taking it, you'll be a bona fide mega-genuis in about 3 IQ tests!!!!

Loomis

 

[Centrum]

I would say no. The last IQ test I did was a couple years ago, and I scored in the low 130's. Pre-med is all about effort. Intelligence is certainly required, but effort is what seperates the men from the boys.

 

[agent]

Originally posted by Centrum
Pre-med is all about effort. Intelligence is certainly required, but effort is what seperates the men from the boys.

good to know.

 

[Centrum]

Oh and a psychology teacher of mine said that the SAT can be converted into an IQ test. Not sure how exactly, but he said that it is one of the best measurements of intelligence out there.

 

[loomis]

your prof is right in the sense that IQ and SATs correlate well with stuff like grades, etc. (traditional measures of how "smart" you are). But if expand the definition of intelligence to include other things (like social knowledge, handiness, dexterity, etc), the tests fail to capture that.

 

[dr kevin40]

I took an IQ test

at first it was low b/c i couldn't understand english good.

but then after i learned english well enuf and retook it, i got 150. that was in like 4th grade. my official one.

took it in college, and it went way down. i don't think the IQ test is applicable after you get older.

 

[Centrum]

Hmm. I personally don't judge the intelligence of people by looking at their "handiness" or social skills. Although those are great atributes, how many times do you actually look at someone who is handy and say, wow they are very intelligent? We are talking about hard core brain power here. The person who is last in my class, even though they might have great dexterity and are social as hell, isn't looked at as intelligent. But the person who is top in my class, who has no social abilities and crappy dexterity, is looked at as very intelligent.

 

[Samoa]

The test I took was the official Stanford-Binet, administered by a psychologist. I was in elementary school, and I had to go in on a Saturday to take it. I had no clue what was happening or why--I thought I was being punished.

 

[MustafaMond]

Originally posted by dr kevin40
I took an IQ test

at first it was low b/c i couldn't understand english good.

LOL!
I hope that's a joke!

WAIS-R (Weschler Adult Intelligence test) is for adults. Ive never taken it. My 'rents dont believe in them. There shouldnt be a big diff in IQ from childhood to adulthood, though.

Kevin, maybe you drank too much in college, and pickled your brain.

 

[dr kevin40]

no i was not joking. my parents made me take it that first time, when i could barely understand english...it was so traumatic.

but yes, my IQ has definitely dropped off from when i was younger.

 

[owen_osh]

Originally posted by loomis
your prof is right in the sense that IQ and SATs correlate well with stuff like grades, etc. (traditional measures of how "smart" you are). But if expand the definition of intelligence to include other things (like social knowledge, handiness, dexterity, etc), the tests fail to capture that.

This may be the most pointless post I've ever read. Basically you say that a test that is supposed to measure how smart you are fails because it measure how smart you are but doesn't measure your handiness. Um, that's why it's called intelligence quotient not handiness quotient. Why would I want to expand the definition of intelligence to include social knowledge, handiness, and dexterity? Can you give any reason other than to make handy but dim-witted people feel better?

 

[Adcadet]

I'm currently reading The Bell Curve, which, as many of you know, is big into IQ testing. Seems verbal portions of tests most closely relate to IQ, which would explain why the verbal section of the MCAT comes first and why med schools consider verbal to be most important (or so I hear).

 

[owen_osh]

And another thing. Do you honestly think intelligence tests should measure social knowledge, handiness, and dexterity? First of all, what the hell is handiness? What does that even mean? OK and social knowledge and dexterity. Please, what kind of test is going to measure those two things. What kind of test is going to measure how well you make friends and at the same time measure how quickly you can move your hands. How are those even related? People who oppose intelligence testing want to add all these radom categories and "redefine" the idea of intelligence to the point that it has no meaning whatsoever.

Intelligence exists and we measure it every day. With every interaction and every person we meet, we make a judgement about a person's intellegence, ie this person is bright and that person is an idiot. If we can measure intelligence in this informal way, why can't it be measured formally and objectively by a test?

 

[jot]

ha - my parents made me take it when i was young too. the formula doesn't work well as you get older - a different test is required. in michigan (where i went for part of elemtary school) you have to get >130 to be in the "gifted program". it was actually a different class altogether, and a decent program. but its somewhat unfortunate that the gradations in opportunity are made at such a young age. that whole honors/standard class argument. it says a little about native talent - but nothing about you actualizing it.

 

[14457]

I know. How accurate are these IQ tests online. i took one, and it said too bad you are still 2 points away from joining our High IQ society. LOL. I took it like twice, I am still a few points away, lol. Oh well. At least my IQ is higher than the average?? lol

 

[agent]

Originally posted by Insy
I know. How accurate are these IQ tests online. i took one, and it said too bad you are still 2 points away from joining our High IQ society. LOL. I took it like twice, I am still a few points away, lol. Oh well. At least my IQ is higher than the average?? lol

well it was all for fun.. at least if anything i got 14 points higher than my wife

 

[GuitarMan]

I am a former Ph.D. student in clinical psychology. I was trained in IQ and personality testing, and have given quite a few WAIS-III's and WISC's (the child form). In psychology the nature of intelligence is highly debated. Everybody believes there is a thing called intelligence, but it is hard to define. The WAIS test's a person's memory, verbal asbtract reasoning, visual abstract reasoning, knowledge of social norms , and vocabulary among other things. As you can see, somebody from another culture, or with English as a second language is at a disadvantage to somebody from the testmakers culture. So there is subjectivity in the test. Also, there are strong practice effects for some of the subtests, so the more times you take the test, the better your IQ.

If you want to know how well the test you took will predict your performance in a given area, try to determine how closely the content of the test resemble's the task you want to perform. Also, I wouldn't put much stock in tests you can find online, and I wouldn't let an average (or better) IQ deter me from med school.

By the way, there are psychological tests that measure dexterity.

GuitarMan, M.A.

 

[shamthis]

I got an 80, is that good?

 

[agent]

Originally posted by shamthis
I got an 80, is that good?

 

[hannacanna]

i had trouble speaking when i was little and my parents thought i was developmentally delayed in a big way. so they had me go to the dept of ed and take an iq test before i could go to kindergarten. and then the results came back, and i had to go Back Up There and take it AGAIN. it was fun for me, but i was really confused. i got into kindergarten, and then in 6th grade i had to take another one. that got me into the gifted program.

a few years ago i asked my parents what the deal was with all the iq tests and they said that they really thought i was very ******ed and when the tests came back with a high iq they didn't believe the results. when i got a good score in 6th grade they finally believed it. i was over my talking problem by then.

thanks. it's great to be intelligent but have your parents think you're stupid.

 

[loomis]

Originally posted by owen_osh


This may be the most pointless post I've ever read. Basically you say that a test that is supposed to measure how smart you are fails because it measure how smart you are but doesn't measure your handiness. Um, that's why it's called intelligence quotient not handiness quotient. Why would I want to expand the definition of intelligence to include social knowledge, handiness, and dexterity? Can you give any reason other than to make handy but dim-witted people feel better?

Hi Owen_osh, It does sounds stupid, but can you take a step back and define intelligence? No one has come up with a definitive answer yet but as others might say it involves a wide range of things from visual (and spatial!) abstract reasoning to stuff like social norms.

In re: to your question why I should give "credit" to people who are really "handy" but do lousy on IQ tests. I said that because I think someone is "smart" when he/she is able look at an image (like a building) and be able to see how other objects might relate to it (like how to place the most efficiently shaped tiles to maximize roof radiation) quicker than others. I think that a person is "smart" when he/she is really able to read a social situation and know how to defuse a sticky situation. I think that it's "smart" when a musically inclined person is able to understand the richness of a musical piece and can build on it in a novel way.

We call folks like Horowitz or Monet geniuses...but it definitely wasn't because of any of that stuff that's tested on an IQ test or SAT. We call them geniuses becuase of their special knowledge in their respective fields, music and art.

Of course, there are lots of people with really great music skills, etc. who do great on IQ tests. The two are not mutually exclusive. However I don't agree to say a person is "smart" just cause he/she did well on an IQ test (or as you say "dim-witted" cause they don't). I just don't think it capures the full range of intelligence out there. my 2 cents,

loomis

 

[gnosis]

Originally posted by Adcadet
I'm currently reading The Bell Curve, which, as many of you know, is big into IQ testing. Seems verbal portions of tests most closely relate to IQ, which would explain why the verbal section of the MCAT comes first and why med schools consider verbal to be most important (or so I hear).

Adcadet, after reading The Bell Curve, I'd suggest reading Stephen Jay Gould's The Mismeasure of Man... It gives an excellent historical analysis of past attempts at catagorizing and rating human attributes such as intelligence. Great book to counter The Bell Curve.

 

[Sonya]

couple of years ago, i went surfing webpages and took several. I scored between 94 to 170 something, i think. but most of my score were around 130... or maybe around 150, i Don't remember. But the mere fact that I can score both 170 and 90 some is proof that unless you take a formal one by a psychologist, that has been thouroughly tested, it's not too meaningful.

And, even if you took one, I don't believe they predict much... accept your ability to qualify for Mensa.

 

[Blitzkrieg]

Originally posted by agent
My wife, whom btw has been cynical about my med school desires to say the least, made me take an IQ test for the first time last night.

I'm 25 years old and had never done this before. It was thru an educational website cant remember the address, but anway, I only had 12 minutes for 32 questions.

She took the same test. She scored a 100 (average)

and I scored a 114. (above)

So I'm wondering if anyone else has taken an IQ test and how relevant is your score to your grades and or ability to suceed in pre-med..?

I was given many tests when I was younger to measure several abilities, but the IQ test was very intense..lasted many hours, and tested many MANY areas...dexterity, dimensional ability, and logic. I think I was six, maybe younger, but I score around 180-190.

I was on the fast track until life hit the family hard....oh well.

p.s. online "iq" tests are nothing but just a good way to waste time

 

[Ryo-Ohki]

79 here.

HA, beat that.


Hey, wait...this is like golf right? Lower scores are better?

 

[Bonds756]

Originally posted by Blitzkrieg


I was given many tests when I was younger to measure several abilities, but the IQ test was very intense..lasted many hours, and tested many MANY areas...dexterity, dimensional ability, and logic. I think I was six, maybe younger, but I score around 180-190.

I was on the fast track until life hit the family hard....oh well.

p.s. online "iq" tests are nothing but just a good way to waste time

180-190!!! Wow, that is great, especially since it is 10 points higher than Einstein's.

 

[Samoa]

Uh, neither the Wechsler tests nor the Stanford Binet can measure IQ's higher than 150. So I don't know what test that could have been.

 

[Random Access]

Originally posted by dr kevin40
but yes, my IQ has definitely dropped off from when i was younger.

IQs should stay roughly constant from childhood to adulthood. You must have fried something.