Skip to main content

IQ Test Controversies Persist

What do IQ tests measure? Can intelligence be improved? How should we select students for gifted and talented programs? How well do IQ tests predict success in life?

This article was published in Scientific American’s former blog network and reflects the views of the author, not necessarily those of Scientific American


What do IQ tests measure? Can intelligence be improved? How should we select students for gifted and talented programs? How well do IQ tests predict success in life? How important are characteristics such as self-regulation and ambition? What about deliberate practice? What is the neuroscience of intelligence?

These are some of the most hot button issues facing us today in society.

Unfortunately, there are a lot of misunderstandings about the IQ test-- what they measure, what they predict, how they should be used -- which get repeated over and over again in these discussions.


On supporting science journalism

If you're enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.


For his radio show Science Fantastic, physicist Michio Kaku interviewed me about these issues, and I had the opportunity to dispel some common myths.

Have a listen here:

 

 

 

 

image credit: barrow.path.com

Scott Barry Kaufman is a humanistic psychologist exploring the depths of human potential. He has taught courses on intelligence, creativity and well-being at Columbia University, N.Y.U., the University of Pennsylvania, and elsewhere. He hosts the Psychology Podcast and is author and/or editor of nine books, including Transcend: The New Science of Self-Actualization, Wired to Create: Unraveling the Mysteries of the Creative Mind (with Carolyn Gregoire), and Ungifted: Intelligence Redefined. Find out more at http://ScottBarryKaufman.com. In 2015 he was named one of "50 groundbreaking scientists who are changing the way we see the world" by Business Insider. He wrote the extremely popular Beautiful Minds blog for Scientific American for close to a decade. Follow him on X.

More by Scott Barry Kaufman