Test Your IQ

Rating:
Summary: Good Theory, Narrow Tests
Review: I found the purpose, factors, and theory of intelligence testing to be interesting.

However, I found the scope of the tests to be limited. For example, word knowledge is of far greater importance than word use (i.e reading and writing), and arithmetic skills are emphasized over problem solving skills (this especially annoying, as I am from a generation that has relied on calculators during schooling). Another problem is that the tests in the book are so similar, that by the end anyone can be a "genius." The tests did not probe much creative thinking either.

Rating:
Summary: Fine book, but not for everyone
Review: I would somewhat agree with the reader from Greece that this is not the best IQ book available. There are indeed better books out there.

The tests are rather challenging and do seem to produce a trustworthy score for some people but they seem to reflect the form and content of IQ tests which may have been the norm a generation ago. As a result, some may find the questions culturally biased since there is a bit more emphasis on word problems than today's standardized exams but are still balanced by their share of logic and math exercises.

Each test consists of 40 questions with a time limit of 30 minutes. Scores are equated to IQ ranges of 5 point increments. For example, your score may correspond to 120-125 but not a figure like 122.

Throughout the first 46 pages of the book, the author outlines the developments in cognitive psychology which have transpired over the last 100 years and presents his thesis that intelligence is primarily influenced by genetic factors and that environment plays a very nominal role. That seems to be the general concensus among many researchers and Dr. Eysenck pulls no punches in dispelling any hopes of increasing inetelligence during one's lifetime. Those seeking that kind of encouragement certainly won't find it here.

While I do not dispute Dr. Eysenck's credentials and expertise and believe his thesis to be sound and quite plausible, his conclusions based on his premise are sometimes bizarre, not the least of which is his insistance that programs like Head Start are a waste of time and money. He justifies this conclusion by citing the program's failure to raise IQs among inner city children in the United States but I'm not so sure that was the rationale for the program. It has been successful, however, in identifying children with high scholastic potential.

In sum, the tests are helpful, and the scores I received seem to reflect similar scores I have obtained on other IQ tests. The tests are fun and in my case are fairly accurate but that may not be the case for everyone. I would recommend this book as a supplement to Alfred Munzert's book of the same title.

Rating:
Summary: Fine book, but not for everyone
Review: I would somewhat agree with the reader from Greece that this is not the best IQ book available. There are indeed better books out there.

The tests are rather challenging and do seem to produce a trustworthy score for some people but they seem to reflect the form and content of IQ tests which may have been the norm a generation ago. As a result, some may find the questions culturally biased since there is a bit more emphasis on word problems than today's standardized exams but are still balanced by their share of logic and math exercises.

Each test consists of 40 questions with a time limit of 30 minutes. Scores are equated to IQ ranges of 5 point increments. For example, your score may correspond to 120-125 but not a figure like 122.

Throughout the first 46 pages of the book, the author outlines the developments in cognitive psychology which have transpired over the last 100 years and presents his thesis that intelligence is primarily influenced by genetic factors and that environment plays a very nominal role. That seems to be the general concensus among many researchers and Dr. Eysenck pulls no punches in dispelling any hopes of increasing inetelligence during one's lifetime. Those seeking that kind of encouragement certainly won't find it here.

While I do not dispute Dr. Eysenck's credentials and expertise and believe his thesis to be sound and quite plausible, his conclusions based on his premise are sometimes bizarre, not the least of which is his insistance that programs like Head Start are a waste of time and money. He justifies this conclusion by citing the program's failure to raise IQs among inner city children in the United States but I'm not so sure that was the rationale for the program. It has been successful, however, in identifying children with high scholastic potential.

In sum, the tests are helpful, and the scores I received seem to reflect similar scores I have obtained on other IQ tests. The tests are fun and in my case are fairly accurate but that may not be the case for everyone. I would recommend this book as a supplement to Alfred Munzert's book of the same title.

Rating:
Summary: Very useful book
Review: The book contains eight IQ tests. Additionally, the first part of the book discusses the following topics: What is the IQ?, IQ tests, What do IQ tests measure?, Interview or test?, The inheritance of intelligence, The biological basis of IQ, Can we increase IQ?, Different intelligences?, Education and IQ, Intelligence and creativity, The qualities of genius, and IQ and equality.

Dr. Hans Eysenck is an eminent psychologist who is famous for his experimental research on personality. He has experience in creating tests, such as the Eysenck Personality Inventory (EPI). So you will be getting a pretty trustworthy IQ score (on a 15 Standard Deviation scale, I've deduced). Many similar books only give an 'IQ score' category or description instead of an IQ score number.

Rating:
Summary: Smart Book, But..........
Review: The first 50 pages are quite interesting as Eysenck explains his view of IQ and intelligence. (70% genetic and 30% environment? More like 50-50 to me.) The rest of the book is just a battery of thoroughly conventional IQ tests to do on your own. I did one (I scored pretty high).

Highly intelligent and high-IQ people are likely to do well academically. But there are also many people who do well academically without an exceptionally high IQ. (Even Richard Feynman did less well on an intelligence test than his sister, while Linus Pauling did less well than his wife! Both scored one or two standard deviations above 100. Hardly impressive.) I doubt Einstein or Ben Franklin would have done poorly - there's no evidence either man ever took an intelligence test - but certainly nowhere nearly as well as Stephen Hawking, whose IQ was reported to be over 170. (Hawking's achievement in physics doesn't even come close to Einstein's though.) Conversely, there are millions of people who do well on intelligence tests without academic success. So IQ tests are very limited in value even in academic terms. (This is particularly true in North America.)

Being high-IQ or even academically successful is hardly a guarantee of real success in life, where personality, luck, and other factors (even looks) matter far more than in school. Considering the numerous examples of truly intelligent people in history who could barely read (Genghis Khan, for instance), I'm convinced that being book-smart is not even necessary - and a high-IQ is one kind of booksmartness. (Stalin was not particularly intelligent in academic terms, yet he was very intelligent in his own twisted way. In the end his personality was what made the difference.)

No example better illustrates the limits of IQ than Jimmy Carter vs. Ronald Reagan. In youth Carter was a top student, graduating from the US Naval Academy before eventually earning a master's degree in physics. Reportedly he was so smart that he only opened his books to help his classmates with homework. After 7 years in the navy - including a stint as an engineer in the first nuclear submarine - Carter made it to the rank of Lt. Cdr. (equivalent to Lt. Col.). To this list of accomplishments one may add Carter's talent for poetry. As ex-President he won the Nobel Peace Prize - another distinction. Reagan on the other hand was never spectacular academically - to put it mildly. Taking classes in sociology (or economics) in a small farm college, Reagan really "majored in extra-curricular activities." He always touched his books the night before exams, and managed to graduate with a C. By all academic standards Carter was a star and Reagan was a dud. Had they taken an IQ test, there should have been no doubt who would have done better (Carter - by a huge margin). Yet once in the White House, their performances were hardly what one would expect from their "IQ's." The fact is, Reagan was incredibly intelligent in ways that matter if one has to be the President.

Don't take this book too seriously. Use it as though it were a puzzle/crossword book. People who invent IQ tests, including Eysenck himself, are usually academically above average of course, but in my view they are hardly intelligent in real life. (I do consider hard scientists like Feynman and Pauling truly intelligent.) So don't be cocky if you do well. And don't hate yourself if you score poorly......after all most of these psychologists are dunces!

Rating:
Summary: IQ: Great mid-level book
Review: This book is divided into three sections. The first section discusses the "meanining and measurement of IQ." It gives a fairly comprehensive history of IQ in terms of inheritance and environment--at least for a layman such as myself. It also discusses creativity and the qualities of a genius. The second section is a set of 8 tests with 40 questions each. The tests seem valid from a re-test standpoint because all of my scores were bunched together. Furthermore the questions seem similar to other IQ test that I have taken (Stanford Binet). The third section provides the answers to the tests. No explanations on how an answer was derived is given; just the answer is provided, which seems reasonable since different people probably arrive at the same answer in different ways. The discussion on your score is minimal, but overall this is a great mid-level book on IQ.

Rating:
Summary: IQ: Great mid-level book
Review: This book is divided into three sections. The first section discusses the "meanining and measurement of IQ." It gives a fairly comprehensive history of IQ in terms of inheritance and environment--at least for a layman such as myself. It also discusses creativity and the qualities of a genius. The second section is a set of 8 tests with 40 questions each. The tests seem valid from a re-test standpoint because all of my scores were bunched together. Furthermore the questions seem similar to other IQ test that I have taken (Stanford Binet). The third section provides the answers to the tests. No explanations on how an answer was derived is given; just the answer is provided, which seems reasonable since different people probably arrive at the same answer in different ways. The discussion on your score is minimal, but overall this is a great mid-level book on IQ.

Rating:
Summary: Not so good
Review: This book is not what I was expecting. It's really not good. You can find better IQ books if you want.