Tests Are Regularly Used Nowadays to Measure

¶ … tests are regularly used nowadays to measure intelligence Alfred Binet and Theodore Simon invented in 1905 what has come to be acknowledged as the first scale. This initial test was aimed at ?identifying children who were mildly or perhaps more seriously retarded? (Mackintosh, 2011, p. 5) by evaluating their performance and delegating specific task sets so as any average child pertaining to a given age group could solve approximately 50% of the test. Thus, based on the number of tasks that a child could solve, the scale ?would classify children's levels of mental functioning. (Urbina, 2011, p. 23). For example, if a six years old was able to solve 50% of the test that had been delegated to this particular age group, his mental age was set at six years old. If he was able to solve above the average expectation, then he would have been attributed a superior mental age, perhaps of seven or eight years old, and this would have meant that his intelligence level is above average. Also, if less than 50% of the tasks were solved, this would have meant that the child in cause had a delay in mental age, thus an intellectual deficit as well. This introduction was necessary to evaluate specifically how mental age relates to intelligence. It will also lead to our intention of discussing Binet's position in relation to intelligence. Furthermore, it provides the basics for post innovations that have led intelligence testing to where it is today. Therefore, our purpose is to discuss various concepts around intelligence and intelligence tests.

I. The Concept of Mental Age

The concept of mental age would generally apply to children and individuals experiencing intellectual impairment. It asserts that there is a certain chronological age when an average level of mental development has been attained, which is to say that mental age is defined ?as the average age for a given ability. (Thurstone, 1926, paraphrased by Keats, 2008, p. 94) Mental age is related to the concept of intelligence in this respect and the intelligence quotient represents the ratio respondent to mental age testing. It is commonly referred to as IQ and it defines an individual's level of intelligence. Tests that assess the intelligence quotient are said to emphasize on various specific particularities in regards to individuals' process thinking, their ability to learn and capacity to solve problems. Thus, while one IQ test measures ?linguistic, logical-mathematical, musical, spatial, bodily kinesthetic, naturalistic, interpersonal, and intrapersonal? (Gardner & Moran, 2006, p. 228) intelligences, another focuses on ?analytical, creative and practical intelligence. (American Psychological Association, 2004, ?Significance and Practical Application?)

II. The Intelligence Quotient

The Intelligence Quotient represents thus ?a unit of measure for expressing the results of intelligence tests. (Kaplan & Saccuzzo, 2013, p. 301) If the French psychologist Binet invented the first intelligence test, it is Lewis Terman who revised it and introduced the term of intelligent quotient. However, this has generated various controversies due to the belief that the intelligent quotient expresses bias behavior. It has been often suggested that intelligent behavior can manifest itself in various activity domains under a wide variety of forms (Gardner & Moran, 2006, p. 228). Critical proponents of the intelligent quotient argue that we have yet to establish a unique theory on intelligence. Indeed, definitions in this respect differ from one psychologist to another. Thus, Binet referred to intelligence as ?the tendency to take and maintain a definite direction; the capacity to make adaptations for the purpose of attaining a desired end, and the power of autocriticism. (cited in Kaplan & Saccuzzo, 2013, p. 282, as cited in Terman, 1916, p.45) Others have defined intelligence in regards to one's abilities to adapt and adjust to the environment around him by applying procedural thinking and problem solving skills (Kaplan & Saccuzzo, 2013, p. 282, cited Freeman, 1995, p. 60-61). It was further suggested that intelligence is subject to personality traits and memory aspects (Kaplan & Saccuzzo, 2013, p. 282, cited Deary, Penke, & Johnson, 2010). While these definitions address the topic of intelligence under various terminologies, it appears that mutual similarities draw on intelligence as the interrelationship of cognitive abilities. This is to say that an individual's ability to relate psychologically and actively to the environment around him in a position that would bring about positive outcomes is closest to defining intelligence.

Age differentiation is a concept that Binet was guided by ?in developing tasks to measure judgment, attention, and reasoning? (Kaplan & Saccuzzo, 2013, p. 285) that, ?to this day underlie not only the Binet scale but also major modern theories of intelligence. (Kaplan & Saccuzzo, 2013, p. 285) This hypothesis is related to our introductory paragraph that describes Binet's scale testing. The concept of age differentiation refers to the fact that one is able to recognize and solve tasks according to his mental age development, more explicitly, that ?one can differentiate older children from younger children by the former's greater capabilities. (Kaplan & Saccuzzo, 2013, p. 285) Thus, delegation of tasks in relation to intelligence testing will occur on basis of task sets for each group age. For example, while a seven years old child would be able to either describe a painting or indicate the right hand and the left year, it is considered improbable that a three years one would be able to complete any of these two tasks. If however, the younger child succeeded, then the difference between the mental age and the chronological age was evident and acknowledged (Kaplan & Saccuzzo, 2013, p. 285).