Question

In order to evaluate an intelligence test WHY is it necessary to know the standardization sample, and whether the test has reliability and validity. Explain in terms of intelligence tests, specifically.

Answer 1

Intelligence Tests are administered to measure the Intelligence Quotient (IQ) of an individual. Intelligence Tests were first introduced to diagnose slow learners or children with mental retardation.

Intelligence tests work out the best if only they are empirically tested, which means that they need to be both Valid and Reliable. Validity refers to the extent that a test measures what it claims to measure. And Reliability is how consistent the results of the test are. If a test claims to measure intelligence but the items or questions on the test are related to obesity, it is an invalid test. Also it is important for a test to be reliable, when it is tested over a period of time, the results should be consistent and accurate.

Determining how well an intelligence test works also depends on the kind of test chosen to be administered on a population. There are different kind of tests; Individual tests, group tests, verbal testswhich is a pencil and paper test wherein a person is instructed in written language, which obviously means that the test taker must be literate, performance tests, are tests which does not include language, it can be administered to literate, illiterate, speech defectives, non-language tests, are most suited for differently abled and subnormals.

Most intelligence tests are a combination of memory, verbal associations, spatial reasoning, learning, thinking, problem-solving and etcetera. The population that the test is administered upon is important to consider as Cognitive intelligence is dependent on an individual's education, upbringing, culture, social classes and races.

It is important to choose the right test on the right population for the intelligence test to work well.