I hear people say that high IQ doesn’t mean you are automatically good at something, but what does it mean then, in terms of physical properties of the brain? And how do they translate to one’s abilities?
In: 682
A High IQ is defined by the IQ test, so it is dependent on the test and how it is designed.
Most of the IQ tests I have seen test people for their ability to to solve problems in a few conceptual areas: logic, mathematics, and language.
However, they don’t test whether someone has a skill. I’ve never seen a general IQ test that evaluated a person’s ability to sell a product to someone else, or whether they can cook a delicious soufflé, or be effective at making a new friend, or make good leadership decisions.
General IQ tests are just that: general. There are many examples of people who score very highly on IQ tests who struggle to even function in the world or hold a job.
On the other hand, there is interesting research that points to emotional or interpersonal skills (sometimes called EQ or Emotional Intelligence) being more highly correlated with success at work and in life. Yet, I’ve never seen an IQ test that tested interpersonal skills.
Howard Gardner, who is a professor at Harvard, is known for his Theory of Multiple Intelligences. In simple terms, he stated that there are many kinds of intelligences that people have that are valuable and that IQ tests have notoriously only focused on a few of these.
I think his work was trying to answer the questions you are asking. What does it mean that someone has a high IQ on a standard IQ test? Is it meaningful? In what way? Why aren’t high IQ people necessarily good at something or successful? Are there other things that should be on an IQ test? What is intelligence?
You can read more about it if you’re interested:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theory_of_multiple_intelligences
Latest Answers