Use of psychometric testing in defining intelligence

Essay from the year 2012 in the subject Psychology - Intelligence and Learning Psychology, grade: 20, University of St Andrews, language: English, abstract: Researchers widely disagree on a common definition of intelligence(Sternberg & Berg, 1986), conceptually describing it as a general capacity forinferring and applying relationships drawn from experience (Herrnstein &Murray, 1994), emphasizing that it is not merely book learning []; [it is] abroader and deeper capability for comprehending our surroundings [] (Gottfredson, 1997). In stark contrast are more operational definitions basedon psychometric intelligence measures, such as Intelligence is what the teststest (Boring, 1923), or a person s score on a statistically determined set ofquestions (Herrnstein & Murray, 1994). Although having supported thetheoretical development of intelligence, psychometric tests have beencriticized for their over-simplification, inaccuracies and potential misuse(Nisbett et al, 2012). This essay will focus on evaluating potential benefits anddrawbacks of using psychometric intelligence tests to help define intelligence,concentrating on the most dominant IQ test, for which the bulk of evidenceexists. [...]