Know Your Own IQ

by Hans Jürgen Eysenck

Book Overview

The Intelligence Quotient remains the definitive means of assessing brain capacity, and this classic book, originally published in 1962, was the first that permitted readers to determine their own IQ.... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0517255707
• ISBN13: 9780517255704
• Release Date: December 1988
• Publisher: Random House Value Publishing
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.95 lbs.

Customer Reviews

First book for self-testing

This was the first book, as far as I know, that allowed a layman to test and know his own I.Q. Written by the famous British psychologist, who worked in both the clinical psychology and personality and intelligence testing areas, it contains a series of tests that you can administer yourself to find out your own I.Q. The tests are what's known as multi-factor or omnibus tests in that your average score is comprised of the results of three subtests, which is a now familiar strategy for designing I.Q. tests. Most tests examine verbal, mathematical, and spatial abilities, and this one does too, using vocabulary, number series, and spatial matching of figures to test these abilities. Number series are regarded especially as a good culture-free way to get at mathematical intelligence, which is good, since the vocabulary area is so socio-economically influenced. That having been said, ironically, it has been shown that the most elaborate I.Q. test is only about 10-15% more accurate than a simple, forty-item, 20-30 minute vocabulary test. Why this is isn't that hard to fathom. Since language is the tool for thought, a command of one's language is a good proxy for one's level of cognitive sophistication in at least linguistic terms, and perhaps for intelligence, also. However, many psychologists aren't comfortable basing decisions on the results of a one-factor test. (Although verbal analogies are similarly good and would work pretty well too, and those tests can be made with very high ceilings, as well. One of them, the MAT, or Miller Analogies Test, is used to test graduate applicants). After I got this book, it was a few years before I saw another self-scoring I.Q. test, this one with a blue and white cover that I recall seeing at many bookstores back in the 70s. I thought this was a pretty good test too, and it had a fairly high ceiling, going up to 150 or so. I noticed there are a number of these out now, and there are even websites offering tests that you can take for a small fee, but this book started this mini-trend or was nevertheless the first. The book also contains 10 of these tests, so you can take all of them and average your scores together to get a more accurate number. I noticed I did do much better, by 10 or 15 points, on several of these than on the others, so they perhaps vary in difficulty somewhat. There's also a fine introduction by Eysenck on the history and theory of I.Q. testing that I enjoyed, although this area was an interest of mine in grad school (although I was mainly a neurobiologist), but someone not knowing anything about the field will learn a lot from it. I also have to pass on a funny quote from Eysenck. He was a speaker at a psychological conference once, and one of the seminars was on human s_xuality. I think this was back in the 70s. Anyway, mast_rbation was one of the topics that came up, and Eysenck said that he didn't know why it was such a maligned practice, as it enabled you to meet a better class of g

Know Your Own IQ by HJ Eysenck

This is an excellent work which provides some rough data onpersonal IQ measurement. IQ measurement is an inexact science;however, it provides some measurement of a person's abilityto do arithmetic compilation, reason and identify patternsvia manipulation of art forms. The arithmetic compilationmay be acquired through high school algebra, trig. andelementary math analysis. General reasoning is gained fromsignificant reading or courses in logic. Manipulation of artforms is enhanced through the arts, arts and crafts andgeneral reading. This text helps to train the mind and;as such it is useful. I would recommend it as an informalhobby.

Your I.Q.

This Is A Book That Help You See How Smart You Realy Are!