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American IQ scores have rapidly dropped, proving the 'Reverse Flynn effect'

(www.popularmechanics.com)
256 points hirundo | 3 comments | 10 Apr 23 13:00 UTC | HN request time: 0.015s | source
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JoeAltmaier ◴[10 Apr 23 22:29 UTC] No.35518164[source]▶
When IQ tests were invented folks didn't know about tests, at least in the US. They were rural immigrants who could maybe read. So when asked logic questions, they would answer pragmatically and be 'wrong'. That had some impact on perceived early low results.

As folks became better-read and educated they began to understand that IQ test questions were a sort of puzzle, not a real honest question. The answer was expected to solve the puzzle, not be right in any way.

E.g. There are no Elephants in Germany. Munich is in Germany. How many elephants are there in Munich? A) 0 B) 1 C)2

Folks back then might answer B or C, because they figure hey there's probably a zoo in Munich, bet they have an elephant or two there. And be marked wrong.

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1. zsz ◴[11 Apr 23 06:38 UTC] No.35521627[source]▶
Here is a bulleted GPT summary of the "Practical Validity" section of the "g factor" Wikipedia article (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/G_factor_(psychometrics) ):

-General intelligence (g) is the best predictor of job performance.

-The predictive validity of g is higher than work experience.

-G facilitates the acquisition of job-related knowledge, resulting in better job performance.

-G provides predictive validity for all jobs, regardless of complexity level.

-Specific aptitude tests tailored for each job do not add predictive validity over general intelligence tests.

-These findings could impact employee selection and training practices in various industries.

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2. throwaway173738 ◴[11 Apr 23 14:02 UTC] No.35525289[source]▶
What if what we’re really measuring is a person’s ability to play along with poorly explained rules?
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3. hnfong ◴[12 Apr 23 14:41 UTC] No.35540534[source]▶
"Poorly explained" probably, but culturally indoctrinated among middle-upper class city dwellers to the detriment of rural, under-educated classes.