2.3 IQ Tests

In the early 1900s, the French government set out to identify learning difficulties in children in advance. To do this, it appointed the psychologist Alfred Binet, who together with Théodore Simon designed a test made of 30 questions.

In the years that followed, the Binet–Simon test was revised and used to select migrants allowed to enter the United States, or to identify so-called “feebleminded” individuals. It was during this period — even before the tests were grounded in a scientific theory — that the term intelligence quotient began to appear.

At the same time, the theories of Charles Spearman — an American psychologist and statistician — gained influence. According to Spearman, behind all cognitive abilities lies a single form of intelligence, which he called the g-factor. The g-factor provided the foundation for the idea that IQ tests could accurately measure intelligence.

Since then, many tests have been developed, each with different questions and different goals. Some are used in clinical settings, others for university admissions, and others still to evaluate artificial intelligence systems.

You can try a selection of these questions yourself — they’re on the panel in front of you.