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Does my IQ really matter?

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Posted by Your Guide on October 12, 2006 5:26 PM

By asking this question you've hit on a very meaningful subject. Because of the number of variations of tests, the answer may be "yes," "no," or "maybe."

Different tests predict outcomes, like job performance and academic achievement, with different levels of accuracy. So, a person who scores a 120 on one test may not perform as well at their particular job as a person who only scored 107 on a different test, but a test which more accurately predicts job performance in that particular field. So, while it may feel great to score over 110 on a particular test (and, indeed, this is an impressive feat), you may find that that score doesn't translate to success in certain jobs or in certain subjects academically.

Probably the most authoritative voice on this topic for most is that of the American Psychological Association. This group assigned a task force to determine the true merits of IQ tests and intelligence research in general. The APA task force discovered that IQ tests do indeed (at least somewhat) accurately predict future academic success and levels of achievement. They did find that this was true especially for individuals, but not really for population samples. The task force also agreed that the tests do accurately predict job performance within reason. And, perhaps most importantly, they found that there is an extremely strong correlation between intelligence and genetics.

In general, though, it is good to know that research has shown that IQ, broadly speaking, correlates with things such as job performance, social pathology (crime, poverty, unemployment, etc.), and socioeconomic advancement.



Next Page: Can I blame my parents if I have a low IQ?

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