Probably you are familiar with term IQ test. They’re in lots of magazines, especially women’s magazines. You can find them online too, just by Googling ‘IQ test’. You’ll get this page of questions filling your screen and you’ve got to select your answer online quickly. Enter the answers and the site will respond with an estimated score.

But what exactly is an IQ test, anyway? And what’s the number mean? IQ is the ‘Intelligence Quotient’, a measure of how smart you are compared to the whole population. It’s supposed to give you an idea of how well you’ll do at a certain profession or how well you’ll perform academically.

The IQ test measures your intelligence to solve problems written on paper. It assesses the ability of your brain to figure out solutions to issues presented to you in written form. Then your results are compared to other people. It is the most used method to measure human intelligence.

IQ 100 is defined as the average of the whole population. If your score is higher than 100 you are more intelligent than average. Any score less than 100 indicates your intelligence level doesn’t match up to the average John Doe.

Advantages of the IQ Test

• Employment Let’s say you’re hiring someone for a new job. You could get a better understanding of the applicant’s intelligence by conducting an IQ test. You could select the type of test to use. These may be more related to the type of work involved. A high score would indicate the candidate is well suited for the position. Some candidates who would probably not be able to do the work could be screened out this way.
• College entrance On top of the SAT and other tests IQ tests to judge their intelligence. This would be useful if there are too few places on the course to accommodate everyone who wants to study. That way there is a better chance to pick the top performers and weed out students with less potential.

Disadvantages of the IQ Test

• IQ tests are far from infallible though Plenty of folks who have taken an IQ test as part of the interview process didn’t do so well at work. Quite a large share of high IQ persons are simply not as successful as you would expect from their IQ score.
• Other factors may be more important College students who initially showed promising scores on their IQ test ended up not being so hot when they sat their term papers. According to some scientific studies have shown that a high self-discipline is more important than a high IQ score. Relying only on smartness is not enough you must put whatever IQ you have to work to do really well. Often high IQ students are overtaken since they do not put in enough effort as the courses become more difficult.

• Many abilites are not measured by IQ testsFor example IQ tests can’t measure how well you’ll do as a leader. Another area not covered is your emotional intelligence, also called EQ, how good you are at handling other people and relationships. There is also the theory of multiple intelligences, that defines 8 different aspects of intelligence that you may have to varying degrees. Intelligence is so much more than a single score.