Chapter 9. Whose IQ Can Be Raised?

Not all i q scores can be raised. Or the many that can be raised, and they are unquestionably the great majority, not all can be raised the same amount. And there is no accurate way of telling whose scores are subject to increase or how much any child's score might be raised.

Let's look at those whose scores cannot be raised. Actually, the word "cannot" should not be used no matter how serious an I Q problem may be involved. But there are types of cases where the cost in time and effort would be great and the practical value of any increase almost nonexistent.

One such type includes the children whose skills and abilities are so well developed that any special efforts to increase them will yield insignificant results. Furthermore, there is no good reason for attempting to increase such scores. Such children are generally in the best classes in school and have every opportunity available to them.

Another type includes children who have genetic mental defects, who have suffered brain damage, or who have other physical disabilities which interfere with the development of their mental abilities.

A third type includes those children whose scores cannot be raised unless they receive special help in solving certain problems. In this category are children suffering from emotional disturbances. Emotional factors play an Important role in the development of mental or intellectual processes. Any child who is seriously disturbed is probably functioning far below capacity. The I Q of such a child cannot be raised until the emotional disturbance is brought under control. Usually this requires some kind of therapy, the nature and length of which depend on the problem behind the disturbance. Broken homes, severe family tensions, parental domination, chronic illness in the family, and other similar domestic problems are frequently the causes of these emotional difficulties.

A case in point was Sally, who at twelve years was deeply disturbed by her parents' divorce. She was a poor student; her reading and mathematics were retarded about two years and her ability to get along in school was severely limited. Her I Q was 85.

But four years later Sally was a top student. She had received therapy at a psychological clinic in the community and this helped her adjust to her parents' divorce. She had also received remedial help in reading and arithmetic. Thereafter her school record was above average in both reading and arithmetic, and her I Q score rose to 121.

Other children in this third category are youngsters who are also behind their grade levels in reading or arithmetic, often as a result of psychological or emotional factors, though not necessarily serious emotional disturbances. Since IQ tests rely so heavily on verbal factors in evaluating children, any child with a reading problem will score lower than he should. And since number ability is also tested by most I Q examinations, any disability in arithmetic will negatively affect the child's score. The scores of such children probably cannot be raised without first dealing with their reading and arithmetic problems.

These exceptions made, there remains the great majority of children whose I Qs are all relatively susceptible to being raised. They fall into three groups.

The largest group is made up of children whose scores are the results of group intelligence tests. A conservative estimate would place the size of this group at somewhere near ninety per cent of the nation's children. Again, even though most of the talk about measuring intelligence concerns the use of individual tests, most of the practice of measuring intelligence is carried on with group tests. And group tests are less reliable and less valid than individual tests, and their results are more subject to change.

The second-largest group consists of children whose scores reflect negative attitudes of one sort or another. Since tests are frequently presented in an aura of high importance, many children are adversely affected by feelings of fear, intimidation, anxiety, or tension before and during the tests. Other children lack confidence in themselves and are upset by the problems they cannot do or cannot get to because of the time limits; this tends to lower their scores.

The third group includes those children whose scores have been influenced by unsatisfactory test conditions. If for any reason the child is not up to par when he takes the test, it will be reflected in his score: for example, if he has not had a good night's sleep, or if he has a cold, or he is upset about an argument at home, his score will probably be lower than it would be normally. Again, if the test room is too hot or noisy, or the examiner in charge lacks competence, the child's score may be affected.

Most important among the test conditions is the competence of the examiner giving it. Individual tests are given by trained psychologists whose competence is high. Group tests, are usually given by teachers who have no special training other than the instruction booklet that accompanies the test. While most teachers follow theses instructions to the letter and conscientiously try to equalize the conditions under which each class or group takes the test, other teachers may allow too little time for one subtest or too much for another, or may not give instructions clearly, or, worst of all, may inadvertently create tension. Any of these factors may affect a child's score.