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Dr. Binet & Measuring Intelligence
Dr. Binet & Measuring Intelligence
At the beginning of the 19th century. Dr. Alfred Binet was asked to help evaluate French children and anticipate who would encounter difficulty in school. The creation of mandatory public schooling was very new, so little work had been done in this area. Dr. Binet developed an early form of what we know now as an 'IQ' (for intelligence quotient) test.
Although Dr. Binet died in 1911, the notion of testing for intelligence has lived on. The practice was adopted wholesale by the U.S. Army in World War I, although the results weren't always applied systematically (or well). Outside of the military, intelligence tests were used to screen immigrants entering the U.S., to argue for forced sterilization of 'undesirable' groups (mostly people of color or with disabilities), and in hiring decisions. This practice of compulsory sterilization, and the wider philosophy of eugenics, was supported by many in psychology and sociology at the time (such as Harry H. Laughlin, who founded the Pioneer Fund, an organization that continues to argue for the benefits of eugenics), and went on to influence U.S. law and Nazi policy alike.
Following the end of World War II and the Civil Rights movement, psychology distanced itself from eugenics and began developing intelligence testing for use with children (as Binet intended for it to be used) and in company hiring decisions. The nature of intelligence, and thus our ability to measure it, is still a hotly debated topic, and the field of intelligence testing has yet to regain the trust of those it was used to harm.
(source)(source)Step 1: Developing An Intelligence Test
Step 1: Developing An Intelligence Test
Imagine that you’ve just obtained your Bachelor’s degree in psychology, and you’re working as a consultant for Talentota, a recruiting agency. You receive the email below from your boss Adrian, indicating that your team has received a new contract, and you have your first task: developing a quick intelligence test to help your company identify and rank applicants for the specified job. Other members of your team are responsible for other traits: your job is to focus on intelligence.
After reading the email below, list some of the behaviors or indicators you would look for in your search. For instance, if I was evaluating whether someone would be a good pet owner, I might list things like
Does not lose temper when being interrupted
Remembers to complete essential cleaning tasks
Number of current pets (minus one point for every pet after the first two)
Securely stores away dangerous materials (e.g., bleach, knives, yarn, etc)
Evidence of basic financial stability (such as a job and a place to live)
Remember, you will need to use this to rule out people who are incapable and people who are overqualified. You’ll also need to use applicants’ scores to compare them -- if everybody who takes the test gets a 5, the measure doesn’t do much good. You’ll need to list at least at least seven items and no more than fifteen. Keep your answers in a separate document so that you can submit them to Moodle at the end.
Step 2: Critique and Reflect on a Test
Step 2: Critique and Reflect on a Test
Once you've created the list above, click here and take the 10 item, very scientific Global Intelligence Test. Engage in some thoughtful reflection below. :)
Reflection Questions
Reflection Questions
From Step 1: Developing an Intelligence Test
From Step 1: Developing an Intelligence Test
Submit the list of traits you came up with for your intelligence test, and compare the scenario you received to the others that were possible (teacher, scientist, and congress). Are there some items in your list that would not work well for the other criteria, or some that carry over well? Why do you think this is?
From Step 2: Critique and Reflect on a Test
From Step 2: Critique and Reflect on a Test
What score did you get? What would you conclude about it’s content (or construct) validity?
Does the test have good face validity? Why or why not? Does your answer change after looking at the other version of the test?
How reliable is the test? For instance, would your results be the same if you came back to take it in two weeks, or if you were from a different country or studying a different major? Again, why or why not?
Do either of these tests (the one you created or the one you took) honor the spirit of Dr. Binet's original test? What does this tell you about the definition and measurement of intelligence?
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