The standardisation and use of performance tests of intelligence under Indian conditions, including illiterates

Abstract

We have. In the first chapter of this work, started with the desirability and necessity of having Intelligence tests, particularly in those countries which are yet undeveloped. We have then discussed the problems of Intelligence testing in India in the context of the country*s social and cultural conditions. We have indicated our general standpoint in regard to these problems and have defined the scope of the present work in general terme.We have, in the second chapter, while discussing the general nature of Intelligence, considered it helpful to give an historical background to the current theories about Intelligence. We have traced the development of the converging notions about Intelligence up to 1927, the date of appearance of Spearman's work "Abilities of Man" and the enunciation of his hypothesis of Intelligence in terms of "g". We have discussed Spearman's "g", indicated our viewpoint and summarised what we consider to be a helpful and useful guide for those who would construct tests of Intelligence. Finally we have discussed Performance tests in general, and indicated the general principles of our Battery of Tests.In the third chapter we have given a detailed description of the tests constituting our Battery, and in the case of tests devised by ourselves specially for this Battery, have explained the way we have devised these teats. A copy of instructions for ad¬ ministering the Battery and the method of scoring the Battery have been given.The fourth chapter contains details of the sample on which the standardisation is based. In this connection the difficulties of testing in the countryside in India have "been pointed out and the way to meet them indicated.The fifth chapter contains the description of the factorial analysis we carried out on the Battery of tests together with the Stanford-Binet scale (Revised 193? - Scale L)„ Thurstonefs Centroid Method with orthogonal axes was used. It has been found that the Battery gives the evaluation of at least two factors - one of a general nature, most probably of the nature of "g" and the other a Memory factor. Indicationsof a third factor of the nature of WKM are also found, but it is not statistically significant in our analysis. This and other factors, particularly in connection with our Picture test, may also be present in the Battery. It was not possible to indicate or demonstrate these conclusively in view of the limited nature of our data suitable for analysis.The sixth chapter contains details of standardisa¬ tion of the Battery under three separate heads, (a) For Literates with non-weighted raw scores; (b) For Illiterates with non-weighted raw scores, and (c) For Literates with weighted scores to give the best prediction for the general factor found in the analysis in Chapter V.The Reliability and Validity of the Battery is discussed in the seventh chapter, which also contains a comparison of the performance of the Literate and the Illiterate groups on the Battery. The fundament¬ al problem of test performance under different environ¬ mental conditions has been briefly discussed and the author*s own view has been given, which is that al¬ though environmental conditions do influence, at times markedly (as in the ease of our groups) the performance of the subjects, so that it is not safe to compare whole groups among themselves on the basis of such tests, it nevertheless stands that within a group the test performance of an individual is a correct guide to the relative position in intelligence of the individual within his group. This is markedly borne out by two evidences in our investigation. We found that although the means of the two groups were different, the dispersions, i.e. the standard deviations were practically the same, so that there were equally all varieties of comparative performance in each group. Also, the I.Qs. of the Illiterate group as determined by our Battery are remarkably in agreement with the general opinion of the intelligence of individual boys as held by those who know them intimately. Environ¬ ment and heredity both, it would thus appear, have a share, but within the same environment, heredity is predominant in determining individual traits.Lastly, we have given the results of sociological, educational and clinical value, in the case of both the Literate and the Illiterate groups, as obtained by the use of our Battery of Performance tests.In conclusion we have to point out that the Battery may be used with advantage in the case of Literates to give an evaluation of the general intelligence of boys between the ages of 11 to 16 years, and also to predict an ability, mostly of a practical nature which is in contrast with the verbal intelligence as measured by most verbal tests of intelligence. This should be helpful in guidance work in schools and elsewhere.The Battery may be used with confidence to assess also the intelligence of illiterate boys between the ages of 11 to 16 years with the help of norms we have provided. In the case of Illiterates, the present investigation opens up a number of points, two of the more important of which, as they appear to us, are the investigation of the growth curve for Intelligence from 15 years up to, say, SO years, and the discovery, if possible, of tests (understood in the most general terms) which would reduce the gulf between their performance and those of the Literates.