Measuring Intelligence

Measuring the intelligence of individual humans and groups of them has been a project of sociology and psychology for some years. Measurement implies a numerical scale, like shoe size. But a problem for social work and psychology is that it's very difficult to validly  enumerate intelligence in any empirical way. This leads to the conclusion that social science can't really be a science, like physics, chemistry, and engineering  which are dependent on mathematics. Using tests to determine intelligence is an attempt by social science to be a real science, based on numbers, and treat the inferiority complex that affects the social sciences and humanities.

In reality, intelligence can't be enumerated because it's a "quality", not a sum, like the color of a horse. Horses can be sorrels, bays, roans, pintos, etc. but it's not possible to describe the hue of a horse in numbers. Like humans, no horse has an identical appearance to any other horse so a description is, of necessity, somewhat general. This same goes for human intelligence.

While there's some speculation that environment determines a portion of a human's intelligence, it's generally agreed that genetics is a major factor. Genetics are likely the source of the most important qualities that shape intelligence.

What are these qualities? One of them, maybe the most important, is curiosity. Intelligent people want to know more about things, to understand them at a deeper level. They don't accept superficial explanations. Curiosity would probably be difficult to teach.

A second quality is creativity. Intelligent people look at a situation or a problem and take different approaches to its opportunities and solutions. These conditions often exist solely because no creative person has been able to analyze them in an intelligent manner. Non-creatives consider the correct response to be one that has been used in similar situations in the past. Isn't there a proverb "Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result"?

Another important characteristic of intelligence is patience, a quality that's in short supply in today's developed world. Intelligent people realize and accept that many things can't happen instantly. They're also willing to postpone a decision or action until knowing as much as possible about the situation. Another common proverb: "If there isn't enough time to do it right, why is there always enough time to do it over?" The hypercapitalist consumer culture, where instant access to the product is more important than it's suitability or quality, is a major selling point and ingrained in society. On-line sales of event tickets eliminate a few minutes in a queue, minutes that could be used for what?

Intelligent people are also diligent: "Prosecuted with careful attention and effort; careful; painstaking; not careless or negligent."  The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition  They understand that a careless and ill-thought approach can result in failure or even disaster.

There are other attributes that distinguish the intelligent from the stupid but these are primary. Children should be encouraged to spend more time thinking about the things around them, how to approach difficulties, the process of problem solving and making the qualities of intelligence a part of their lives and personalities. Such should be the duty of a good parent.