Abstract
The object of this paper is to describe a discovery concerning the variability of intelligence by which it is possible to locate its absolute zero. The discovery will be described with four implications, namely, (i) two laws of variability of intelligence, (2) determination of the absolute zero of test intelligence, (3) the construction of a true mental growth curve which has not hitherto been possible, and (4) determination of the age at which test intelligence begins.
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Literatur
The writer wishes to acknowledge the statistical assistance of Miss Annette McBroom who has carried out most of the calculations for this study.
Thurstone L. L. ‘A Method of Scaling Psychological and Educational Tests,’ J.Educ. Psychol., 1925, 16, pp. 433–451. Cyril Burt’s data on the Binet tests were used to illustrate the method. An application to educational scale construction is shown in ‘The Unit of Measurement in Educational Scales’ by L. L. Thurstone, J.Educ, Psychol., Nov., 1927. A refinement in statistical procedure for the method is described in ‘Scale Construction with Weighted Observations’ by L. L. Thurstone, also to be published in the same journal.
Thurstone,L. L., operibus cuatis.
‘The National Intelligence Tests,* A manual of directions, published 1924 by the World Book Company. The absolute scaling was done by C. L. Odom for a master’s thesis, not yet published.
Data for the Stutsman Test were obtained from Miss Stutsman. They will be published in her doctor’s thesis.
Data for the Illinois General Scale were obtained from C. L. Odom’s master’s thesis, not yet published.
Data for the two Dearborn tests, Series I and II were obtained from C. L. Odom’s master’s thesis, not yet published.
‘Otis Intelligence Scale,’ a manual of directions published by the World Book Company. The absolute scaling was done by C. L. Odom for a master’s thesis, not yet published.
Thurstone, L. L., operibus citatis.
Such a case is the series of age norms for the Army Alpha test, published by the Bureau of Educational Measurements and Standards, Kansas State Teachers College, Emporia, Kansas, Feb. I, 1926.
Thurstone, L. L., operibus cuatis.
Franzen, R., Statistical Issues,’ J.Educ. Psychol, 1924, 15, pp. 367–382.
Thurstone, L. L., operibus citatis.
This reasoning is in agreement with Professor Culler’s analysis of the learning function. For another discussion of initial positive acceleration of the learning function, see my monograph ‘The Learning Curve Equation/ Psychol. Monog., 1919, 26 (No. 114), pp. 51.
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© 1973 H. J. Eysenck
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Thurstone, L.L. (1973). The Absolute Zero in Intelligence Measurement. In: The Measurement of Intelligence. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-6129-9_3
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