Setting time limits for tests: Lessons learned
For most tests, it is best to have a time limit that is tight enough to be practical, but not so low that the test starts measuring mental speed. The challenge is striking that balance.
Comparing Cronbach’s alpha and McDonald’s omega reliability values
When subtests consist of well constructed items, the underestimate from using Cronbach’s alpha is usually pretty small — about 4.5%.
RIOT IQ: A New Frontier in Intelligence Assessment
The RIOT fills a void in intelligence testing. Coming in Spring 2025.
Students still need to learn facts
Factual knowledge still represents the starting point for evaluating arguments, weighing options, and drawing conclusions. These are things that modern societies regularly expect their citizens to do.
Book review: INEQUALITY: A GENETIC HISTORY by Carles Lalueza-Fox
Given its putative topic, Lalueza-Fox’s (2022) book is most notable for what it doesn’t discuss.
The search for Albert Einstein’s IQ
I have concluded that any currently existing claims of an IQ score for Albert Einstein are not credible.
The Dan Ariely and Francesca Gino cases show need for updated data retention policies
The Ariely and Gino cases show that APA urgently needs to reform its data retention policy.
Revisiting Moore’s transracial adoption study
Transracial adoption studies are a powerful methodology for examining the relative contribution of genetics and environment to average differences in IQ across racial and ethnic groups. The best — and most famous — transracial adoption study was the Minnesota Transracial Adoption Study (MTAS) conducted by Sandra Scarr and her colleagues (Scarr & Weinberg, 1976; Weinberg…
Moderators and Mediators: The Epicycles of the Social Sciences
For over one thousand years, the ptolematic model of the universe dominated Western and Islamic astronomy. All that most people remember about the theory (and often only characteristic they ever learned) is that it placed the earth at the center of the universe, with the planets, sun, and moon all orbiting the earth. This is…
Stupid? No. Unfamiliar? Yes. The meaning of low mean IQs in developing nations
Illiterate people’s thinking probably remains grounded in their everyday experience. When these people take a test that solely measures abstract thinking, they perform poorly. This does not make them stupid. Instead, it shows the disconnect between their natural mode of thought and the unfamiliar test content.
