Racial/Ethnic Differences in the Cognitive Ability Tests
Shikhar Kumar Gupta
Texas A&M University
The cognitive ability level of different ethnic subgroups has been a controversial topic among the psychologists for over a century. One of the main aspects regarding this issue is the validity of the Cognitive ability tests like SAT, ACT etc. Is the cognitive ability tests used commonly, for important placement and selection in the domains of educational admissions, civilian employment and the military, fair? Or are they biased on the basis of race or ethnicity? Many studies indicate that a fair amount of bias is present with cognitive ability test takers of different ethnicities. In a study done recently by an Organizational Psychology Department,
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On the one hand, there is an extensive body of evidence showing that scores on cognitive ability tests predict a wide array of criteria, ranging from performance in school and on the job to mastery of everyday tasks that involve active information processing (Hartigan & Wigdor, 1989; Jensen, 1980; Neisser et al., 1996; Schmidt & Hunter, 1981, 1999). These tests appear to work well, both as predictors of organizationally relevant criteria and as measures of a common set of constructs for men and women and for members of most racial and ethnic groups (Jensen, 1980; Wigdor & Garner, 1982). On the other hand, mean scores on cognitive ability tests differ across racial and ethnic groups (Herrnstein & Murray, 1994; Jensen, 1980; Scarr, 1981), and the use of these tests to make decisions about individuals can have substantial adverse impact on Blacks, Hispanics, and members of other racial and ethnic groups (Gottfredson, 1986, 1988). In contexts in which there are a large number of applicants for a small number of positions, the use of cognitive ability tests in selection can virtually eliminate Black and Hispanic applicants from
Not only does the KBIT-2 lack in accommodating for cultural and language barriers, but it is also deficient towards those with mild to moderate motor difficulties due to the fact that the test requires minimal motor skills (Bain & Jaspers, 2010). However, since the test does not require time limits individuals with mild motor difficulties could be assessed. Overall, the Kaufman Brief Intelligence Test, Second Edition appears to be psychometrically strong and feasible assessment to administer (Bain & Jaspers, 2010).
Along with the already clear and precise guidelines for the Woodcock-Johnson III NU Tests of Cognitive Abilities, seven new features have been added to the tests (Woodcock & Johnson, 1989). In the Woodcock-Johnson III NU: Tests of Cognitive Abilities, it includes eight new tests, which measure information-processing abilities (Keith, Kranzler, & Flanagan, 2001). These tests include ones which measure working memory, planning, naming speed, and attention (Woodcock, McGrew, & Mather, 2001b). Also included in this version are five new cognitive clusters (McGrew, Werder, & Woodcock, 1991). Of these five clusters, there are also two additional clusters that are available when cognitive and achievement batteries are used together (Ramos, Alfonso, & Schermerhorn, 2009). Included in the tests that is helpful are interception plans and modified organization; the interception plans and modified organization increase the depth and breadth of coverage (Benner, Ralston, & Feuerborn, 2012). New features of the Woodcock-Johnson III NU: Tests of Cognitive Abilities also includes expanded cognitive factor structure, developing comparison between the tests; in the expanded cognitive factor structure, two to three tests measure different aspects of a broader ability more clearly (Jones et al., 2008). Another change is the fact that clusters and tests are now grouped into three broad cognitive areas (Ritchey & Coker, 2013). The three cognitive areas include Verbal Ability, Thinking Ability, and Cognitive Efficiency (Floyd et al., 2010). Expanded procedures for evaluating ability and achievement discrepancies is another new feature as well (Kranzler, Flores, & Coady, 2010). Also in the list of new features is a Diagnostic Supplement to the W...
Before answering the questions let find out what intelligence test is. It is a test consisting of a series of tasks requiring people to use various verbal and non verbal skills to measure the individual’s intellectual ability. Now that we know what an intelligence test is we can now answer the question better. Three important short comings of intelligence test that have nothing to do with intelligence are: having low motivation or high anxiety which can greatly influence the performance on the test, also IQ test may contain cultural biases in their language and or tasks that may place people of one background above people of another back ground, and members of minority groups may have little experience with this kind of test or may be uncomfortable with examiners of a different ethnic back ground than them (Comer, 2013, pp.107).
Vars, F. E., & Bowen, W. G. (1998). Scholastic aptitude test scores, race, and academic performance in selective colleges and universities. (In Jencks, C. & Phillips, M. (Eds.), The Black-White Test Score Gap (pp. 55-85). Washington, DC: Brookings Institution
Piaget has played an important part in helping people understand more about children and the process of a child’s cognitive development. Throughout this lab report, there will be questions asked of two young children. The first child’s name is Makayla. She is 9 years old and has just started fourth grade. The first Piagetian task that was given to the children is referred to as the conservation of mass task. During this task, the children rolled two equal amounts of play dough into two separate balls. Afterward, Makayla was asked if these two separate balls had the same amount of play dough. She responded yes, because they came from the same container so they are the same amounts. The children were then asked to roll one ball of play dough into a snake. Afterward, Makayla was asked if the ball and the snake had the same amount of play dough. She replied yes, because its all still from the same size container so they are the same amounts. The second task that was asked of the
The problem is determining if a person’s ability and character is devalued due to this preference for minority groups. Affirmative action is often abused when people use their ethnicity rather than workmanship or skill level to receive a job or college opportunity. Through the years after President John F. Kennedy first introduced affirmative action, there has not been significant steps toward equality of the races in the workplace or schools. Therefore, new actions and plans should be put in place to help solve this on-going
Intelligence tests have been developed by scientists as a tool to categorize army recruits or analyze school children. But still discussing what intelligence is, academics have a difficult time defining what intelligence tests should measure. According to the American researcher Thorndike, intelligence is only that what intelligence tests claim it is (Comer, Gould, & Furnham, 2013). Thus, depending on what is being researched in the test and depending on the scientist’s definition of intelligence the meaning of the word intelligence may vary a lot. This essay will discuss what intelligence is in order to be able to understand the intelligence theories and aims of intelligence tests.
Today, in the United States, standardized tests are administered every year by states to their Kindergarten-12th grade public school students. Different states place different weight on their standardized testing results where some states differ their funding based on results and annual improvement, whereas other states allow schools to simply gauge where their students are scoring relative to other schools in the state. These tests, however, are only standardized within one state. One of the few tests standardized throughout the entire country is the SAT, the Scholastic Aptitude Test, administered by College Board and required by, “More than 800 of the nation’s colleges and universities,” (Comras, 1984). This test will be the standardized test focused on in this paper. While standardized testing is that, standardized, and enables the comparison of one student to another, the meaning of the score does not equate to a test of intelligence. Therefore, while standardized testing should be applied in the education system, it needs to be more indicative of the material learned in school and should hold less weight than it currently does in the college admissions process.
The validity coefficient of a cognitive ability test or GCA is 0.51, one of the highest validity coefficient, structured interview as equally valid. Cognitive ability test brings forth many advantages, they are considered highly reliable, both verbal reasoning and numerical test have shown high validity for a wide range of jobs, validity rises with the increasing complexity of the job and combinations of aptitude test have higher validities than individual test alone (HR-Guide, 2002). Meta-analytic studies have demonstrated that GCA as one of the most powerful predictors of success job performance and training. GCA has been used in the past to hire federally such as in the Army.
Samuda, Ronald. Psychological Testing of American Minorities: Issues and Consequences. New York: Harper and Row, 1975.
jason's cognitive profile { jason is an isfp, which means his cognitive functions are, in order, fi=se=ni=te. each function and its placement reveals jason's course of judging and perceiving obtainable information, which gives insight to how he operates but more importantly why he operates like he does. below i will state and briefly describe his cognitive functions, thus hopefully enabling a more thorough profile of him.
In this world, there are many different individuals who are not only different in demographics but also different neurologically. Due to an immense amount of people it is important to first understand each individual, in order, to better understand them and to help them when it comes to certain areas such as education, the work force, and etc…. For this reason psychologists have aimed to further understand individuals through the use of psychological assessments. This paper aims to examine a particular assessment tool, the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scales (Fifth Edition), which measures both intelligence and cognitive abilities (Roid, 2003). This assessment is usually administered by psychologists and the scores are most often used to determine placement in academics and services allotted to children and adolescents (despite their compatibility for adults) (Wilson & Gilmore, 2012). Furthermore before the investigation dives into the particulars of the test, such as its strengths and weakness’, it is best to first learn more about the intelligence scales general characteristics.
In this paper, I will give a brief overview of Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences (MI). I will also discuss the merits and critiques of the theory in the field of cognitive development. I will also discuss the applicability of Gardner’s theory to my personal development. The final section will cover the application of the theory in a counselling framework. This will be supported by discussing theoretical orientations that would best adopt application of Gardner’s theory.
From the very beginning of our life, from conception until death we grow in many ways. We grow physically, cognitively, and socially but which of these is more important? Physical development, cognitive development, or psychosocial development they are all intertwined and are based upon each other. An issue with physical development can cause serious detrimental effects on both cognitive development and psychosocial development. For example; a child who is born with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome will not only have physical malformations but also cognitive delays and this in turn can lead to psychosocial delays. Physical development is the most important for the first few years of life as well as cognitive
The “Kenyon Commencement Speech,” by David Foster Wallace, explains the intellectual thought process of how people think in the white-collar business’s higher-income lifestyle, while “Blue-Collar Brilliance,” by Mike Rose, depicts how a blue-collar worker develops great cognitive skills through working a lower income job. While these passages have separate settings, in which one shows the life-style of college graduate in commission and the other a simple high school graduate’s career, both give great insight on the proper meaning of intelligence and its overall impact on a worker’s mentality. Many ideas on the opinion of intelligence white-collar and blue-collar jobs require