The term “IQ” – “Intelligence Quotient” – originates from the dominant method of studying intelligence in this century, the psychometric approach. Researchers using this approach believe that intelligence can be measured and use IQ tests in order to do so. A person’s IQ score was formerly obtained by dividing his “mental age” by his actual age, and though this particular procedure is no longer being practised, the term is still commonly used to refer to scores obtained on intelligence tests.

Intelligence itself is an almost poetic concept. We recognise it as such when we encounter it, but no single definition suffices to encircle it. Generally, intelligence is what we use to understand ideas, learn and remember, solve problems and interact with the world through various forms of thought and reasoning. Other than these commonly accepted aspects of intelligence, different people have different ideas of what constitutes intelligence – from being able to solve mathematical problems to learning a new language or being able to write a poem or some other medium of creativity. A survey in the late 1980s asked two dozen experts to define intelligence and received as many different definitions.

Similarly, researchers are divided over whether the different aspects of intelligence can be accurately measured. Most researchers believe that a general statistical factor (g) can found from the results of multiple IQ tests through a method called factor analysis, and that this factor is a general measurement of intelligence. Though g is widely accepted, not all researchers agree with the idea of a measurable general intelligence factor. Some researchers believe that g does indeed measure certain types of intelligence, such as analytical problem solving, but neglects other aspects such as creativity. Other researchers completely dismiss the possibility of being able to accurately measure intelligence.

Intelligence tests have been around since the Imperial Exminations of Ancient China, which tested various aspects of intelligence through memorisation, understanding of the Confucian classics and the writing of essays and poems. Only the top one percent of those who took the examinations were granted a post in the public service, and this was usually the only hope of a peasant farmer to gain a better life.

Today, we have a variety of IQ tests, with some focusing on verbal skills, others on spatial, mathematical, analytical or other mental skills. Certain tests depend on reaction time while others have a set or no time limit, and some are designed to test different mental skills within the same test. Also, IQ tests have differing scales, a score of 120 on one test may mean the same as a result of 133 on another test. Scores on IQ tests are commonly converted to a scale where the mean is 100 and the standard deviation is 15. Ninety-five percent of the population scores within two standard deviations above and below the mean (70 – 130).

A person’s IQ score varies from time to time, depending upon the areas stressed by the test, as well as such factors as stress and sleep deprivation, which is known to hamper intellectual ability.

A number of societies exist for people with high IQs, the most commonly known being Mensa. The only qualification for membership into Mensa is a score at or above the 98th percentile (greater than or equal to 98 percent of the general population who have taken the test) on a standard IQ test. The Singapore branch of Mensa International holds monthly tests at the YMCA. This is the easiest method to find out your IQ (or, at least, your IQ on that day and on that particular test).

It is notable that an IQ score measures intelligence and only intelligence. A person’s IQ score in no way reflects his mental or emotional health – smart does not equal sane (not even well-adjusted) – nor does it give any indication of social, spiritual or moral development. Also, IQ tests generally only measure those aspects of intelligence centered around literacy and numeracy, and give little weight to other aspects of intelligence, such as creativity or intuition. Individuals with a high IQ come from all walks of life, and traditional ’smart’ occupations such as doctors or scientists can have individuals who would be measured as having only average intelligence.

In conclusion, a person’s IQ score is at best only an estimate of certain aspects of that person’s intelligence. A person with a higher IQ than you may not be ‘smarter’, and a high IQ, ultimately, is not really that much to rave about.