Glossary
Validity
Definition
Validity is whether a test measures what it claims to measure and whether its scores support the way they are used. A test can be valid for one purpose, such as research on groups, and not for another, such as a clinical diagnosis or a hiring decision.
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Why it matters for IQ scores
Validity asks the question that matters most: what can this score be used for? A test is never just valid; it is valid for a purpose, with evidence. For IQ tests the evidence usually takes the form of correlations with other measures and later outcomes.
Examples from the research
In about 70,000 English children, general intelligence at age 11 correlated 0.81 with total GCSE exam points at age 16 (Deary, Strand, Smith & Fernandes, 2007). A review of 85 years of personnel research put the validity of general mental ability for predicting job performance at 0.51 (Schmidt & Hunter, 1998). Both are group-level findings about well-built tests used under proper conditions.
Common confusions
Validity belongs to a use, not to a test name. Strong evidence for a clinical battery does not transfer to a short online test, and IQ Octopus makes no claim to predict anything about an individual. Validity also needs reliability first: a score that jumps around cannot track anything well. For the outcomes research, read what IQ predicts, and for the clinical versus online difference see online vs clinical IQ tests. Also see meta-analysis.
Try one · Pattern Recognition
Which tile comes next?
Tap the option you think is right, or show the answer.
Show the answer
The missing tile shows a very large solid arrow pointing down and to the right (option 2).
How to solve it
- Compare neighboring tiles and name what changes each time.
- From tile to tile, the arrow turns an eighth of a turn clockwise.
- From tile to tile, the arrow gets bigger.
- Everything else stays the same from tile to tile.
- The last tile shows a large solid arrow pointing right. Apply each change once more.
- So the missing tile shows a very large solid arrow pointing down and to the right.
That was 1 puzzle. The full test has 25.
Sources
- Schmidt, F. L., & Hunter, J. E. (1998). Psychological Bulletin, 124(2), 262-274. doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.124.2.262
- Deary, I. J., Strand, S., Smith, P., & Fernandes, C. (2007). Intelligence, 35(1), 13-21. doi.org/10.1016/j.intell.2006.02.001