[SERIOUS] Clever fools: Why a high IQ doesn't mean you're smart

[DaShi]

I choose people based on the "What Star Trek Character are You Test?" If I need a outgoing hands-on leader, I go with a Kirk. If I need a thoughtful, take things slow type, a Picard. Mostly, I need red-shirts. Lots and lots of red-shirts.

[KrazyHorse]

The ones I am more familiar with are not about IQ, but are about aptitude tests like the SAT/GRE/etc. Doesn't change the point.

JM

General aptitude tests are indeed a pretty good stand-in for most formal IQ tests.

[Kuciwalker]

An article about a topic we've covered here before: the fact that IQ isn't all there is to intelligence.

Oh noes! Our measurement doesn't explain 100% of the variance! Whatever shall we do?

[Felch]

Some people are high INT and low WIS. I thought that was common knowledge.

[loinburger]

We clearly need to supplement real intelligence measurements with bull**** intelligence measurements e.g. kinesthetic intelligence.

[KrazyHorse]

Some people are high INT and low WIS. I thought that was common knowledge.

Luckily I have high charisma and am plus 5 defense against edged weapons

[Felch]

That's why I always keep a vial of acid handy at all times.

[Japher]

x-post

Luckily I have high charisma and am plus 5 defense against edged weapons

What does that mean? That you're fat and funny?

[Lorizael]

Language? Insults? I haven't called you any names, nor have I cursed yet. But here's a start:

Stop ****ing being a little weaselly *****. You start a thread based on a fluff piece, you obviously lack any appreciation for the actual quantitative work which has gone into the study of this precise issue, your criticisms of the extant literature are naive at best and you want me to treat you with respect?

Go **** yourself.

I'm not referring to cursing when I say language, but your inability to engage in precise reading comprehension. We've been over this before. While you've got me beat hands down in mathematics and scientific language, I actually know how to put together sentences to properly convey my intent.

With regards to the fluff piece, I'm not attempting to make the argument that IQ tests are useless, only that there may be other tests we can run that can also measure important aspects of intelligence. That's more what this article is about. For example:

The problem with IQ tests is that while they are effective at assessing our deliberative skills, which involve reason and the use of working memory, they are unable to assess our inclination to use them when the situation demands. This is a crucial distinction: as Daniel Kahneman at Princeton University puts it, intelligence is about brain power whereas rational thinking is about control. "Some people who are intellectually able do not bother to engage very much in analytical thinking and are inclined to rely on their intuitions," explains Evans. "Other people will check out their gut feeling and reason it through and make sure they have a justification for what they're doing." An IQ test cannot predict which of these paths someone will follow, hence the George W. Bush incongruity of people who are supposedly smart acting foolishly.

...

A potent criticism of Stanovich's theory is the lack of a proven test of rational thinking skills that could be used alongside IQ tests. "It is not enough to say what intelligence is not measuring, you have to propose alternative ways of measuring rationality," says Kahneman. Stanovich maintains that while developing a universal "rationality-quotient (RQ) test" would require a multimillion-dollar research programme, there is no technical or conceptual reason why it could not be done. There are already several contenders, such as the measure of decision-making competence used by Bruine de Bruin and Fischhoff.

Would a valid RQ test be useful? "Hypothetically, yes, because it would cover skills that are more directly related to what people will be doing in their jobs," says Bruine de Bruin. Kahneman maintains that IQ tests, as measures of brain power, work well for academic selection. "But I would very seriously consider RQ tests as a way of selecting managers or leaders, particularly if I wanted a style of leadership that is thorough and not overly impulsive," he says.

An article about a topic we've covered here before: the fact that IQ isn't all there is to intelligence.

Oh noes! Our measurement doesn't explain 100% of the variance! Whatever shall we do?

Uh, make a better measurement?

[DaShi]

You should keep adding explanatory variables until your model explains all variance!

[KrazyHorse]

Lori, nobody here is saying that IQ is perfect. The point is that when you ask a loaded question like "is it time to get rid of g", you AREN'T simply stating that there can be improvement; you're saying that g is basically useless as a predictive variable. In order to make that extraordinary claim you need to at least present evidence that other measures capture all of the variance currently explained by g.

[Kuciwalker]

Uh, make a better measurement?

Come tell us when you get one

[Felch]

250 micrograms of LSD, and a survival kit (flashlight, topographic map, compass, water purification tabs, in a small watertight container). Drop you off in the middle of a forest, just after sunset. Make it back to civilization by sunrise, and you pass.

That's my ideal test of practical intelligence and mental prowess. Hell, that's my ideal camping trip.

[Lorizael]

Lori, nobody here is saying that IQ is perfect. The point is that when you ask a loaded question like "is it time to get rid of g", you AREN'T simply stating that there can be improvement; you're saying that g is basically useless as a predictive variable. In order to make that extraordinary claim you need to at least present evidence that other measures capture all of the variance currently explained by g.

Jesus Christ. The article is describing tests that could go alongside traditional IQ tests. Seriously, work on your reading comprehension, KH.

[KrazyHorse]

Are you forced to take the LSD or can you use it to drug unwary travelers and steal their vehicles?