Purpose: Designed to assess cognitive ability.

Population: Ages 2 to adult.

Score: Scaled scores, area scores, and a Composite Score.

Time: (30-90) minutes.

Authors: Lewis M. Terman and Maud A. Merrill.

Publisher: The Riverside Publishing Co.

Scoring: This test has twelve subtests: Vocabulary, Comprehension, Absurdities, Verbal Relations, Pattern Analysis, Copying, Matrices, Paper Folding and Cutting, Quantitative, Bead Memory, Memory for Sentences, Memory for Digits. The examiner must establish a basal age of the child and continue testing until a ceiling is reached. Interpretation is based primarily on objective scoring.

Reliability: Reliability of the scale varies at different ages and different IQ ranges. From age 2.5 to 5.5, the reliability coefficients range from .83 for IQS 140-149 to .91 for IQS 60-69. For ages 6 to 13, the coefficients are .91 to .79 respectively, and for ages 14-18 the coefficients range from .95 to .98 respectively.

Validity: Validity of the scale depends on three sources: 1) the choice of items according to mental age on the 1937 scale assures that the new scale is measuring the same thing that was measured in the original 1916 scale; 2) regular increases in mental age from one age to another agreed with increases in percent passing from one chronological age to the next in both forms of the 1937 scale; and 3) biserial correlations were computed for each item of Forms L and M of the 1937 scale. The retention of an item for the 1960 scale partly depended on its correlation with the total score. The mean biserial correlation for the 1960 scale is .66 (range from .61 at young age levels to .73 for the adult levels).

Norms: The standardization group consisted of a representative sample of 2,100 children, with approximately 100 subjects at each Stanford-Binet year level. Unlike the 1960 norms, which did not include nonwhites in the standardization group, the 1972 norms contained nonwhites (including black and Spanish-surnamed individuals) and whites. Subjects were, however, excluded from the normative sample if English was not the primary language spoken in the home.

Suggested Uses: Used for assessment in educational, research, and clinical settings.

Intelligence Quotient, or IQ, is a theoretical construct used by psychologists within standardized tests as a means of describing one’s intelligence level. In the most commonly-administered IQ test — the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) — an average score is 100; about 95% of IQ scores fall between 70 and 130. It is important to note that IQ is not real — is simply a philosophical construct psychologists have created to describe a subset of human functioning they believe to be subjectively important in modern society. (Because of this, unless an IQ test has been specifically adopted for a different culture or country — and the most popular one has — IQ tests are very culturally specific and may be invalid when used in other cultures.)

IQ tests involve the measure of two primary components — verbal and performance. Because the performance portion of the IQ test requires physical manipulation of objects in front of the testing psychologist, a legitimate IQ test cannot be taken online. All of the so-called “IQ tests” you see online are invalid — none have been validated against real-world IQ tests with peer-reviewed journal publications.

When an IQ test is scored, three primary scores are obtained — verbal IQ, performance IQ, and the full scale IQ. The full scale IQ is what is commonly referred to as one’s “IQ score” by laypeople. Most people perform better in one component over the other in IQ testing (one either has a strength in verbal or performance).

How Are Verbal and Performance IQ Scores Obtained?

These two sections of the IQ test are divided into subscales, each measuring a different component of IQ.

Verbal scales

• Information: 29 questions – a measure of general knowledge.

• Digit Span: Subjects are given sets of digits to repeat initially forwards then backwards. This is a test of immediate auditory recall and freedom from distraction.
• Vocabulary: Define 35 words. A measure of expressive word knowledge. It correlates very highly with Full Scale IQ
• Arithmetic: 14 mental arithmetic brief story type problems. tests distractibility as well as numerical reasoning.
• Comprehension: 16 questions which focus on issues of social awareness.
• Similarities: A measure of concept formation. Subjects are asked to say how two seemingly dissimilar items might in fact be similar.

Performance scales

• Picture Completion: 20 small pictures that all have one vital detail missing. A test of attention to fine detail.

• Picture Arrangement: 10 sets of small pictures, where the subject is required to arrange them into a logical sequence.
• Block Design: Involves putting sets of blocks together to match patterns on cards.
• Digit Symbol: Involves copying a coding pattern.
• Object Assembly: Four small jig-saw type puzzles.

You cannot “fake” your performance on an IQ test. Either you have the abilities or knowledge tested on, or you don’t. Each subscale test starts off with easy questions or problems, and gets progressively more difficult with each successive question or problem. Only geniuses (those scoring higher than 130 on full scale IQ) will be able to answer all of a scale’s questions or solve all of its problems.

People who score generally between 70 and 130 are considered to be within the normal range of IQ functioning, where 100 is the theoretical average. Those scoring 130 and above are significantly smarter than the average population, and those scoring 70 and below are significantly less smart than the average population.

A person who is feeling worthless or guilty often misinterpret trivial, day-to-day events as evidence of personal defects in themselves. They may also have an exaggerated sense of responsibility for events in other people’s lives as well. Some people who feel guilty might, for example, blame themselves for being sick, or for failing to meet a particular responsibility in their life.

For example, a real estate agent may become preoccupied with self-blame for failing to make sales even when the real estate market has collapsed and other real estate agents are equally unable to make sales.

Sometimes, a person who experiences these feelings of worthlessness or guilt may take them to delusion levels, such as blaming oneself for world poverty.

A change of appetite can also refer to a significant increase in appetite, or cravings for specific foods.

Appetite changes can be severe and result in a significant weight loss or weight gain in an individual who has experienced a change of appetite.

A change of appetite as a symptom shouldn’t be confused with a pre-existing eating disorder, such as binge-eating or anorexia. Typically a change of appetite is not the focus of the problem, but rather one of a constellation of symptoms.

Family members or friends will often notice a person will become more withdrawn, and will decline spending time with the family member or friend. If this occurs once, it’s not a concern. If it occurs time and time again without any reasonable explanation or excuse, it may be a sign of loss of interest.

For example, a formerly avid golfer who loses all interest in playing golf any longer, or a child who used to enjoy soccer finds excuses not to practice over and over again.

Loss of interest can extend into sexual activities with one’s romantic partner as well. However, the side effects of many commonly prescribed antidepressant medications include a reduced interest in sexual activity.

Loss of interest is only of concern when it occurs over and over again in the person, and is a common symptom of many mental health issues, including depression.

A person may say they feel fatigued with little or no physical exertion. Even the smallest tasks may seem to require substantial effort in someone who has suffered from a loss of energy. A person’s ability to complete tasks — such as at home or work — in a timely or efficient manner may also be a sign of loss of energy.

For example, a person may complain that washing and dress in the morning are exhausting, and take twice as long as usual. This kind of behavior would have to be experienced time and time again, not just once or twice, for it to be considered significant.

A loss of energy is a symptom of many mental health issues, including depression.

“Thus, if inhibition is when behavior is contrained or restrained through self-consciousness, anxiety about social situations, worries about public evaluation , and so on, then disinhibition can be characterized by an absence or reversal of these same factors. Indeed, Prentice-Dunn and Rogers (1982) see disinhibition as a product of reduced public self-awareness, which should lead to less concern about the judgment of others. With regard to an individual’s behavior on the Internet, disinhibition could be summarized as behavior that is less inhibited than comparative behavior in real life.

Thus disinhibition on the Internet is not defined as flaming or hostile communication, but rather is seen as any behavior that is characterized by an apparent reduction in concerns for self-presentation and the judgment of others.”

Perhaps a person decides that if they walk under a ladder, they will not get into the college they want to attend (because the day before they walked under a ladder and got rejected from another potential school)…their behavior after walking under the ladder could be altered. For instance, they might stop studying as hard as they did before and therefore have a lower GPA. They might stop chairing school committee and withdraw from regular social events where they could make connections.

You can see how easily this behavior can turn into self-sabotage. On the other hand, if someone believes that if they carry around a lucky penny whenever they go on an interview for a new job (assuming they had received a good job in the past under these circumstances) it might boost their confidence so they give a great interview performance.

On another level Social Responsibility Norms are taught to us by parents and other authority figures. SRMs are flexible terms as not all people believe the same things are right and wrong. For instance, some parents tell their children not to meddle in other peoples’ relationships while others would take that opportunity to champion the idea of trying to help someone out of an abusive situation.

An example of a social norm (in this case, a societal rule that tells people they should help others even when it may not benefit them).

It should be noted  that these “rules” are not legal laws, instead they are more like social obligations. Most people follow the norms because the “group” may choose to punish the transgressor. Punishments could include: guilt/shame, talking behind their back/gossiping about the person, physical harm or even being made to leave the group permenantly.

Example: Although handshakes between men and women are common in most Western countries, in certain parts of the world such a gesture would be considered inappropriate contact between the sexes.