Intelligence MCQs
Intelligence MCQs
1. Experts who defend intelligence tests against the charge of being culturally biased and discriminatory
would be most likely to highlight the ________ of intelligence tests.
A) normal distribution
B) content validity
C) predictive validity
D) reliability
E) standardization
2. A 12-year-old who responded to the original Stanford-Binet with the proficiency typical of an average
9-year-old was said to have an IQ of:
A) 75.
B) 85.
C) 115.
D) 125.
E) 133.
3. Intelligence tests have effectively reduced discrimination in the sense that they have:
A) avoided questions that require familiarity with any specific culture.
B) helped limit reliance on educators' subjectively biased judgments of students' academic potential.
C) provided an objective measure of teaching effectiveness in different public school systems.
D) done all the above.
4. Although Susan is a brilliant pianist and highly acclaimed ballet dancer, her high school intelligence
test scores were only average. What does Susan's experience suggest regarding (a) the reliability and
validity of intelligence tests, (b) the nature of intelligence, and (c) the desirability of currently
popular "gifted child" education programs?
5. Which of the following provides the strongest evidence of environment's role in intelligence?
A) Adopted children's intelligence scores are more like their adoptive parents' scores than their biological
parents'.
B) Children's intelligence scores are more strongly related to their mothers' scores than to their fathers'.
C) Children moved from a deprived environment into an intellectually enriched one show gains in
intellectual development.
D) The intelligence scores of identical twins raised separately are no more alike than those of siblings.
6. Intelligence test scores are most likely to predict accurately the academic success of ________
students.
A) elementary school
B) high school
C) college
D) graduate school
9. In his study of children with high intelligence scores, Terman found that:
A) the children were more emotional and less healthy than a control group.
B) the children were ostracized by classmates.
C) the children were healthy and well-adjusted, and did well academically.
D) later, as adults, they nearly all achieved great vocational success.
10. Which of the following suggestions would be LEAST helpful to a young performing artist who wants
to become a highly creative ballet dancer?
A) "Study the performances of the world's best ballet artists."
B) "Develop friendly and supportive relationships with fellow ballet dancers."
C) "Win competitive performances that will lead to performance arts scholarship offers."
D) "Take time for those practice drills that you find most enjoyable."
11. The contribution of environmental factors to racial gaps in intelligence scores is indicated by:
A) evidence that individual differences within a race are much greater than differences between races.
B) evidence that White and Black infants score equally well on certain measures of infant intelligence.
C) the fact that Asian students outperform North American students on math achievement and aptitude
tests.
D) all of the above.
12. The correlation between academic success and intelligence test scores will be highest if computed for
a group of individuals whose scores range between:
A) 55 and 100.
B) 85 and 115.
C) 100 and 145.
D) 70 and 130.
14. Sandra completed the Computer Programming Aptitude Test when she applied for a position with
Beta Electronics. Six months later, she took the same test when she applied for a position with
another company. The fact that her scores were almost identical on the two occasions suggests that
the test has a high degree of:
A) content validity.
B) reliability.
C) predictive validity.
D) standardization.
15. Which of the following statements most accurately reflects the text's position regarding the relative
contribution of genes and environment in determining intelligence?
A) Except in cases of a neglectful early environment, each individual's basic intelligence is largely the
product of heredity.
B) With the exception of those with genetic disorders such as Down syndrome, intelligence is primarily
the product of environmental experiences.
C) Both genes and life experiences significantly influence performance on intelligence tests.
D) Because intelligence tests have such low predictive validity, the question cannot be addressed until
psychologists agree on a more valid test of intelligence.
17. Which of the following provides the strongest evidence of the role of heredity in determining
intelligence?
A) The IQ scores of identical twins raised separately are very similar.
B) The intelligence scores of fraternal twins are more similar than those of ordinary siblings.
C) The intelligence scores of identical twins raised together are more similar than those of identical twins
raised apart.
D) The intelligence scores of adopted children show relatively weak correlations with scores of adoptive
as well as biological parents.
19. A high-school psychologist who is looking at a student's intelligence score finds a jump of 30 points
between the earliest score at age 2 and the most recent at age 17. The psychologist's knowledge of
testing would probably lead her to conclude that such a jump:
A) indicates that different tests were used, creating an apparent change in intelligence level, although it
actually remained stable.
B) signals a significant improvement in the child's environment over this period.
C) is unsurprising, since intelligence scores do not become stable until late adolescence.
D) is mainly the result of the age at which the first test was taken.
20. Five-year-old Jaime performs on an intelligence test at a level characteristic of an average 4-year-old.
Jaime's mental age is:
A) 4.
B) 4.5.
C) 5.
D) 80.
E) 125.
21. When Samson was told that he correctly answered 80 percent of the items on a mathematical
achievement test, he asked how his performance compared with that of the average test taker.
Samson's concern was directly related to the issue of:
A) standardization.
B) predictive validity.
C) reliability.
D) content validity.
22. The decline in college aptitude test scores during the 1960s and 1970s was due in part to:
A) the increasing academic diversity of students taking these tests.
B) the standardization of college aptitude tests on more representative samples of the population.
C) the introduction of new and increasingly difficult aptitude test questions.
D) today's students' inexperience with standardized tests.
23. Before about age ________, intelligence tests generally do not predict future scores.
A) 1
B) 3
C) 5
D) 10
E) 15
24. When completing a verbal aptitude test, members of an ethnic minority group are particularly likely
to perform below their true ability levels if they believe that the test:
A) is a measure of emotional intelligence as well as academic intelligence.
B) assesses their interests as well as their abilities.
C) is biased against members of their own ethnic group.
D) results in a distribution of scores that form a bell-shaped curve.
25. Which of the following observations provides the best evidence that intelligence test scores are
influenced by heredity?
A) Japanese children have higher average intelligence scores than American children.
B) Fraternal twins are more similar in their intelligence scores than are ordinary siblings.
C) The intelligence scores of children are positively correlated with the intelligence scores of their
parents.
D) Identical twins reared separately are more similar in their intelligence scores than fraternal twins
reared together.
26. Boys are most likely to outnumber girls in a class designed for students gifted in:
A) reading.
B) speech.
C) mathematics.
D) a foreign language.
27. The test created by Alfred Binet was designed specifically to:
A) measure inborn intelligence in adults.
B) measure inborn intelligence in children.
C) predict school performance in children.
D) identify mentally retarded children so that they could be institutionalized.
E) do all of the above.
28. The written exam for a driver's license would most likely be considered a(n) ________ test.
A) achievement
B) reliability
C) interest
D) aptitude
E) intelligence
29. Most experts view intelligence as a person's:
A) ability to perform well on intelligence tests.
B) innate mental capacity.
C) ability to learn from experience, solve problems, and adapt to new situations.
D) diverse skills acquired throughout life.
30. Your psychology professor has announced that the next test will assess your understanding of
sensation and perception. When you receive the test, however, you find that very few questions
actually relate to these topics. In this instance, you would be most concerned about the ________ of
the test.
A) reliability
B) factor analysis
C) standardization
D) validity
E) normal distribution
31. If a test yields consistent results every time it is used, it has a high degree of:
A) standardization.
B) predictive validity.
C) reliability.
D) content validity.
E) heritability.
32. If both depressed and nondepressed individuals receive similar scores on a diagnostic test for
depression, it is said that the test:
A) has not been standardized.
B) is not valid.
C) is not reliable.
D) has not been factor-analyzed.
E) does not produce scores that form a normal distribution.
34. Gifted child education programs are most likely to be criticized for:
A) overemphasizing the genetic determinants of giftedness.
B) limiting the concept of giftedness to superior academic aptitude.
C) claiming that intelligence test scores can predict children's academic success.
D) underestimating the extent to which a g factor underlies success in a wide variety of tasks.
35. Which of the following best describes the relationship between creativity and intelligence?
A) Creativity appears to depend on the ability to think imaginatively and has little if any relationship to
intelligence.
B) Creativity is best understood as a certain kind of intelligence.
C) The more intelligent a person is, the greater his or her creativity.
D) A certain level of intelligence is necessary but not sufficient for creativity.
36. Psychologists measure the correlation between aptitude test scores and school grades in order to
assess the ________ of the aptitude test.
A) reliability
B) standardization
C) normal distribution
D) factor analysis
E) validity
37. Disproportionately more Whites than Blacks would be admitted into American colleges if
performance scores on ________ were the only criterion for college admissions.
A) the Stanford-Binet
B) the WAIS
C) the SAT
D) any of the above
38. In order for Mr. and Mrs. Goldberg to best predict their newborn daughter's future intellectual
aptitude they should:
A) carefully assess the infant's sensory and reflexive responses.
B) observe their daughter's general level of emotional reactivity.
C) obtain information about their own levels of intelligence.
D) monitor the age at which their child first walks and talks.
40. The characteristics of savant syndrome most directly suggest that intelligence is:
A) a diverse set of distinct abilities.
B) largely unpredictable and unmeasurable.
C) a culturally constructed concept.
D) dependent upon the speed of cognitive processing.
41. The bell-shaped pattern that represents the frequency of occurrence of intelligence test scores in the
general population is called a:
A) standardization sample.
B) reliability coefficient.
C) factor analysis.
D) normal curve.
E) savant syndrome.
42. Intelligence scores are most likely to be stable over a 1-year period for a ________ student whose
intelligence test score is ________.
A) preschool; 80
B) second-grade; 125
C) sixth-grade; 115
D) tenth-grade; 95
45. A classmate makes the following claim: "Despite numerous federally funded Head Start programs
and nationwide efforts to desegregate public schools, blacks continue to lag behind their white
counterparts in intelligence and academic achievement. Clearly, black Americans must be
genetically inferior to white Americans." Use research evidence and logical arguments to
intelligently refute your classmate's statement.
46. Studies of adopted children and their biological and adoptive families demonstrate that with age,
genetic influences on intelligence:
A) become more apparent.
B) become less apparent.
C) become more difficult to entangle from environmental influences.
D) become easier to entangle from environmental influences.
47. The similarity between the intelligence test scores of identical twins raised apart is:
A) less than that between children and their biological parents.
B) equal to that between identical twins reared together.
C) equal to that between fraternal twins reared together.
D) greater than that between ordinary siblings reared together.
48. Before becoming attorneys, law students must pass a special licensing exam, which is an ________
test. Before entering college, high school students must take the SAT, which is an ________ test.
A) achievement; aptitude
B) aptitude; achievement
C) achievement; achievement
D) aptitude; aptitude
49. If you compare the same trait in people of similar heredity who live in very different environments,
heritability for that trait will be ________; heritability for the trait is most likely to be ________
among people of very different heredities who live in similar environments.
A) low; high
B) high; low
C) environmental; genetic
D) genetic; environmental
50. By what age does a child's performance on an intelligence test become stable?
A) 2
B) 4
C) 6
D) 7
E) 12
53. Joni claims that she is intellectually gifted because she "possesses" an IQ of 145. She is most clearly
committing the error known as:
A) heritability.
B) the Flynn effect.
C) reification.
D) the naturalistic fallacy.
E) savant syndrome.
54. High levels of male hormones during prenatal development may enhance:
A) verbal reasoning.
B) spatial abilities.
C) overall intelligence.
D) all of the above.
55. By creating a label such as "gifted," we begin to act as if all children are naturally divided into two
categories, gifted and nongifted. This logical error is referred to as:
A) rationalization.
B) nominalizing.
C) factor analysis.
D) reification.
E) heritability.
56. Vanessa is a very creative sculptress. We would expect that Vanessa also:
A) has an exceptionally high intelligence score.
B) is quite introverted.
C) has a venturesome personality and is intrinsically motivated.
D) lacks expertise in most other skills.
E) is more successful than other sculptors.
61. The formula for the intelligence quotient was devised by:
A) Sternberg.
B) Gall.
C) Binet.
D) Terman.
E) Stern.
62. Which of the following is NOT cited as evidence of the reciprocal relationship between schooling and
intelligence?
A) Neither education level nor intelligence scores accurately predict income.
B) Intelligence scores tend to rise during the school year.
C) High school graduates have higher intelligence scores than do those who drop out early.
D) High intelligence is conducive to prolonged schooling.
63. Who would have been the LEAST enthusiastic about a reliance on eugenics for the improvement of
human intellectual functioning?
A) Plato
B) Binet
C) Terman
D) Darwin
64. In order to assess whether intelligence is a single trait or a collection of several distinct abilities,
psychologists have made extensive use of:
A) the normal distribution.
B) criterion-based validation.
C) standardization.
D) reliability assessment.
E) factor analysis.
65. A measure of intelligence based on head size is likely to have a ________ level of reliability and a
________ level of validity.
A) low; low
B) low; high
C) high; low
D) high; high
66. Mr. and Mrs. Lembo are parents of a mentally retarded child. It is most likely that their child:
A) is a female rather than a male.
B) suffers obvious physical defects.
C) was born with an extra chromosome.
D) will have difficulty adapting to the normal demands of independent adult life.
68. Precocious college students with unusually high levels of verbal intelligence are most likely to:
A) retrieve information from memory at an unusually rapid speed.
B) perform at only an average level on tests of mathematical aptitude.
C) experience less loneliness and achieve happier marriages than the average college student.
D) demonstrate unusually high levels of the practical managerial intelligence common to successful
business executives.
69. Benito was born in 1937. In 1947, he scored 130 on an intelligence test. What was Benito's mental
age when he took the test?
A) 9
B) 10
C) 11
D) 13
E) It cannot be determined from the information provided.
70. Juan is the oldest son of Mexican parents who immigrated to the United States less than 5 years ago.
Juan's high school teachers perceive him to be fairly intelligent, but his SAT scores are low and he is
having trouble getting into college. Juan's mother angrily claims that "intelligence tests are biased
against Hispanics." Juan's father sadly counters, "It's not the tests that are biased; it's American
education that is biased." Carefully explain why you would agree or disagree with the comments
made by each of the parents.
71. Research on gender and emotional intelligence suggests that women are more skilled than men at:
A) avoiding the experience of emotional ambivalence.
B) preventing emotions from distorting reasoning.
C) interpreting others' facial expressions of emotion.
D) delaying emotional gratification in pursuit of long-term goals.
72. Current estimates are that ________ percent of the total variation among intelligence scores can be
attributed to genetic factors.
A) less than 10
B) approximately 25
C) between 50 and 70
D) over 75
73. At age 16, Angel's intelligence score was 110. What will her score probably be at age 32?
A) 105
B) 110
C) 115
D) There is no basis for predicting an individual's future IQ.
75. Object assembly, picture arrangement, and block design are three subtests of the:
A) WAIS.
B) SAT.
C) Stanford-Binet.
D) GRE.
76. First-time parents Geena and Brad want to give their baby's intelligence a jump-start by providing a
super enriched learning environment. Experts would suggest that the new parents should:
A) pipe stimulating classical music into the baby's room.
B) hang colorful mobiles and artwork over the baby's crib.
C) take the child to one of the new "superbaby" preschools that specialize in infant enrichment.
D) relax, since there is no surefire environmental recipe for giving a child a superior intellect.
78. Binet and Terman would have been most likely to disagree about the:
A) extent to which intelligence is determined by heredity.
B) need to standardize intelligence tests.
C) possibility of predicting people's academic success from intelligence test scores.
D) extent to which individuals differ in their intellectual abilities.
79. The highly positive correlations between scores received on comparable sections of the SAT and
GRE provide evidence for the ________ of these test scores.
A) reliability
B) heritability
C) content validity
D) predictive validity
E) normal distribution
80. Who would have been most enthusiastic about the value of a single intelligence test score as an index
of an individual's mental capacities?
A) Thurstone
B) Spearman
C) Gardner
D) Sternberg
82. Those who define intelligence as academic aptitude are most likely to criticize:
A) Terman's concept of innate intelligence.
B) Spearman's concept of general intelligence.
C) Binet's concept of mental age.
D) Gardner's concept of multiple intelligences.
E) Stern's concept of intelligence quotient.
83. If a test designed to indicate which applicants are likely to perform the best on the job fails to do so,
the test has:
A) low reliability.
B) low content validity.
C) low predictive validity.
D) not been standardized.
84. Gerardeen has superb social skills, manages conflicts well, and has great empathy for her friends and
co-workers. Peter Salovey and John Mayer would probably say that Gerardeen possesses a high
degree of:
A) g.
B) social intelligence.
C) practical intelligence.
D) emotional intelligence.
86. Don's intelligence scores were only average, but he has been enormously successful as a corporate
manager. Psychologists Sternberg and Wagner would probably suggest that Don's ________
intelligence exceeds his ________ intelligence.
A) verbal; performance
B) performance; verbal
C) academic; practical
D) practical; academic
88. Twenty-five-year-old Carmella is mentally handicapped and can neither read nor write. However,
after hearing lengthy, unfamiliar, and complex musical selections just once, she can reproduce them
precisely on the piano. It is likely that Carmella is:
A) gifted with a high level of Spearman's g factor.
B) gifted with a high level of creativity.
C) suffering from Down syndrome.
D) someone with savant syndrome.
89. Boys outnumber girls at the ________ levels of reading ability and at the ________ levels of
mathematical problem-solving ability.
A) high; low
B) low; low
C) high; high
D) low; high
91. Which of the following persons best illustrates Sternberg and Wagner's concept of practical
intelligence?
A) Jamal, a college student who quickly recognizes the correct answers to multiple-choice test questions
B) Gareth, a graduate student who generates many creative research ideas
C) Shelley, a newspaper reporter who has a knack for making connections with very important people
D) Cindy, a young mother who prefers playing with her children to cleaning her house
92. The existence of ________ reinforces the generally accepted notion that intelligence is a
multidimensional quality.
A) adaptive skills
B) mental retardation
C) general intelligence
D) savant syndrome
93. There is a ________ correlation between head size and intelligence and a ________ correlation
between brain size and intelligence.
A) slightly negative; slightly positive
B) slightly positive; slightly negative
C) moderately positive; slightly positive
D) slightly positive; moderately positive
94. A test of your capacity to learn to be an automobile mechanic would be considered a(n) ________
test.
A) reliability
B) interest
C) achievement
D) aptitude
E) intelligence
96. Research on the effectiveness of Head Start suggests that enrichment programs:
A) produce permanent gains in intelligence scores.
B) improve school readiness, but have no measurable impact on intelligence scores.
C) improve intelligence scores but not school readiness.
D) produce temporary gains in intelligence scores.
100. The eugenics movement would have been most likely to encourage:
A) selective breeding of highly intelligent people.
B) creation of special education programs for intellectually inferior children.
C) construction of culturally and racially unbiased tests of intelligence.
D) use of factor analysis for identification of various types of intelligence.
1. C
2. A
3. B
4.
5. C
6. A
7. A
8. D
9. C
10. C
11. D
12. D
13. B
14. B
15. C
16. B
17. A
18. D
19. D
20. A
21. A
22. A
23. B
24. C
25. D
26. C
27. C
28. A
29. C
30. D
31. C
32. B
33. D
34. B
35. D
36. E
37. D
38. C
39. C
40. A
41. D
42. D
43. B
44. B
45.
46. A
47. D
48. A
49. A
50. D
51. B
52. B
53. C
54. B
55. D
56. C
57. D
58. C
59. D
60. C
61. E
62. A
63. B
64. E
65. C
66. D
67. D
68. A
69. D
70.
71. C
72. C
73. B
74. D
75. A
76. D
77. D
78. A
79. A
80. B
81. D
82. D
83. C
84. D
85. C
86. D
87. B
88. D
89. D
90. B
91. C
92. D
93. D
94. D
95. C
96. D
97. C
98. C
99. E
100. A