The influence of intergroup comparisons on Africans' intelligence test performance in a job selection context

Sub-Saharan Africans living in Belgium (N = 69) completed a culture-free intelligence test in a simulated job selection environment. Prior to testing, the authors instructed participants that Africans' average performance on this test was generally better (positive comparison), worse (negative comparison), or equal to Belgians' performance. In a control condition, no such information was given. Results indicated that, compared with the equal and control conditions, performance was lower when intergroup comparisons were negative. In the former condition, participants were also more likely to endorse external factors that may account for lower performance. The authors interpreted the findings in line with stereotype threat theory (C. M. Steele & J. Aronson, 1995). In the context of job selection, the validity of intelligence tests conducted with members of stigmatized groups may be affected by the salience of social stereotypes and intergroup social comparisons.     

The effects of intelligence test preparation

The first goal of this study was to investigate the effects of reading a book concerning intelligence tests and the effects of a specific test-training programme on numerical and verbal intelligence tests. The second goal was to investigate to what extent the acquisition of test-specific problem-solving strategies affects the ability to solve items on different, but comparable tests (transfer). In the experimental design two factors were included: practice (pretest or no pretest) and (level of) preparation (none, book, or training), so there were six conditions. Each condition consisted of about 26 subjects, who had been randomly assigned to one of the conditions. The results showed a strong effect of preparation, especially for the numerical intelligence test and to a lesser degree for the verbal intelligence test. No practice or pretest effects were found. Positive transfer was demonstrated for the numerical test. The results for the verbal test were less clear. The implications for the predictive and construct validity are discussed.     

Piagetian tasks measure intelligence and intelligence tests assess cognitive development: A reanalysis

A reanalysis of the intercorrelations of Wechsler subtests, achievements tests, and Piagetian tasks originally published by Stephens et al. (1972) has corrected errors in the original design and has used models which allow both differences and similarities to appear. Unit weighted composites of the two sets of tests were formed after first partialling chronological age out of the complete table of intercorrelations. The correlation between the composites is .876 which corrects, using split-half estimates of reliabilities, to .918. Next the matrix of partial correlations was factored and the factors rotated to a hierarchical structure. Piagetian tasks contribute almost equally to the definition of the general factor in intelligence along with the Wechsler subtests and the achievement tests. The general factor, furthermore, makes the single largest contribution to the variance of most of the measures of both sets. The smaller group factors consist of an Academic Achievement factor and three Piagetian factors. Of the latter the largest and most clearly identified is the factor called Operational Thought in the earlier analysis, but is here described simply as Conservation. It is concluded that the evidence for communality in function far outweighs the differences between intelligence tests and Piagetian tasks.     

The many faces of stereotype threat: Group- and self-threat

Contending with negative intellectual stereotypes has been shown to depress the academic performance of targets of the stereotypes [Steele, C. M. (1997). A threat in the air: How stereotypes shape intellectual identity and performance. American Psychologist, 52, 613-629]. The present paper examines whether women’s mathematics performance is differentially affected by the concern of confirming that a negative stereotype is true of the self (self-threat), than by the concern of confirming that the stereotype is true of their gender (group-threat). In two studies we independently manipulated these different threats for women taking a mathematics test. Gender identification moderated the effect of group-threats on test performance; only women highly identified with their gender underperformed. The performance of less gender-identified women was unaffected by group-threats. In contrast, gender identification did not moderate the effect of self-threats—both high- and low-identified women underperformed. The results of these studies suggest that women’s math performance is differentially affected by the source of the threat.     

Note on comparability of MicroCog test forms.

This study investigated the differences between the Standard and Short forms of MicroCog by comparing Domain scores for a clinical sample of 351 substance abusers which gave a significant difference between scores on the Spatial Processing Domain. Implications for research and clinical use are discussed.     

The comparability of scores from three mathematics test of the College Entrance Examination Board

Scores from three mathematics tests of the College Entrance Examination Board were examined in order to determine the effect on the scores of (1) choice of test, (2) amount of training in mathematics, and (3) recency of training in mathematics. Groups of candidates were paired in a number of comparisons and matched by means of a regression technique which is described. On the average, students of similar ability made comparable scores on the mathematical section of the Scholastic Aptitude Test and on the Comprehensive Mathematics Test. The scores of candidates who took the Intermediate Mathematics Test averaged substantially higher than those of comparable students who took either of the other two tests. A greater amount of mathematical training and more recent training were both found to be positively related to scores on the mathematical section of the Scholastic Aptitude Test and on the Intermediate Mathematics Test, but the effect of recency appeared to be less than one might expect.The author is indebted to Mrs. L. B. Plumlee of the Educational Testing Service for her extensive aid in carrying out this project.