I.Q tests-do the results matter to you?

I think they are a waste of time. And, like you say, parents use them to compare their higher scoring kids to others. I think they can damage a kid for life. If he/she discovers they have a lower IQ than many others, he/she might get to thinking the aren't smart enough. IQ tests do not measure true ability. To classify kids according to their IQ is nonsense. All kids should be encouraged equally to become creators and learners. All it takes is one great idea and anyone can become extremely successful.

I don't think this kind of test is accurate, especially for those in the internet. Sometimes I can score 130+, but sometimes I can only score 110. What do others think?

ive had them done. As an undiagnosed dyslexic as a school child i was given them to try and work out what was wrong but as a tool in educational psychology it has many problems. To me the biggest problem is that they are biassed but this, in the uk at least is a class bias, they certainly reflect a middle class world view. Over and above this there is also a cultural bias, this makes them deeply flawed when it comes to using them as a tool However, where they are as valuable is lifting a childs self esteem, particularly if this has been damaged as a result of the education system. blessed be

I have taken quite a lot of IQ tests because I enjoy them. I nearly always get an exceptionally high IQ score after completing the tests but I think this simply proves that I am good at IQ tests. I think people put too much stock in the validity of tests such as the IQ test - they take no account of a person's social skills which are far more important in the 'real' world. The tests are generally biased towards Western culture but I would imagine there have been steps towards correcting this over the years.

I usually, take IQ test from the internet, and the results sometimes is relative to my own personality, but it really doesnt matter cause you yourself knows you best and knows where you stand and what is your IQ, stands.

IQ test are determine how much common since you have, not realy how smart you are. You can score low on an IQ test, but still be smart.

The only time that I ever took an IQ test was the entry test for British Mensa, which I sat about 25 years ago. I can still remember the result, which was 168. An IQ test is supposed to demonstrate intelligence and power of reasoning as opposed to acquired knowledge, but without a respectable knowledge many of the sequences would make little sense. I have always been a lover of this type of question, so I genuinely believe that I could score higher than many people with a higher intelligence. The ability of these tests is definitely limited.

I don't think I have ever taken an IQ test and if I ever did it was in high school way back in the early 80's. I have no interest in knowing what my IQ is. I just don't see the point in it.

I have taken some of the online ones, got a number pegged onto my intelligence and left it at that. I know what I am capable of, and what I am not, that is what really matters. I actually got a higher I.Q rating that says above average, but I just don't pay any mind to that stuff.

I have taken IQ tests through school, and my average score is usually around about 140. I don't really think it's a very good measure of aptitude in anything except on-the-spot thinking, really. It doesn't examine many skills that a person might possess, but really only scrapes the surface. There are several different types of intelligence, and an IQ test really only measures one. I don't really trust the online IQ tests. Some have given me results as low as 125, and others put me in the genius range. I think it just depends on the website and how the website is feeling. :)

I usually test between 135 and 145, my son test around 120, one summer, I bought a mensa book at a garage sale, he was 11 or 12. I have never talke the mensa test, but I have been told that the questions were similar. He was rattling off the answers before I could get done reading them. He really did not read until about age 12 due to learning disabilites that were largely ignored by his school. In math, he far surpasses me. Reading he is proably about average. Socially, he could sell sand to Saudi Arabia. My concern is that he will become a lawyer or politician. I think there are many intelligences and the IQ test only measures one and I am not sure if it does that very well. The human mind is still largely a mystery and until we understand it much better, there will be no way to fully assess in an accurate mannerall of the different intelligences people have.

I don't have a problem with the tests themselves, it's the standard definition of intelligence that bothers me. It's usually assumed that people like doctors, lawyers, psychologist, and yes "rocket scientists" are intelligent. I'm sure they are but I could never be one. Is it because my IQ isn't high enough? No, it's because I don't have the same type of intelligence required for these jobs. I can't exactly explain what type mine is but it is definitely on the creative/abstract side of things. I was an average student, had no interest in college and don't have some high paying job. But what is my IQ you ask? I don't know..."they" only tested up to 165, I was somewhere higher than that.

I think it is true as you conclude that IQ test will always be somewhat socio-culturally biased although this does not ernder them totally useless. There is also the problem that people who take lots of IQ tests will become more skilled at doing them. In this case their better results will be due to training rather than increased intelligence. You can also debate as to what intelligence actually is and whether there is different types of intelligence such as emotional intelligence.

I.Q. tests measure the brain's activity(well a well made test anyhow) so it does not matter if you are a painter,and have artistic sense, or a "rocket scientist" and have lots' of logical and math skills.