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IQ & Identifying Characteristics

First introduced in 1904 by the French psychologist Alfred Binet, IQ or "Intelligence Quotient" is a measure of one's intelligence in relation to his chronological age. The resulting quotient is multiplied by a hundred, such that a person with an IQ of 100 is considered to be of average intelligence for his age. IQ testing is regarded as useful by some and fallible by others.

IQ Testing
- The term "ratio IQ" introduced by Binet is different from "deviation IQ" measured by IQ tests used today. IQ tests usually measure short-term memory, factual knowledge, visual-spatial abilities, abstract reasoning and common-sense abilities that generally level off when a person reaches the age of 16.The method for computing deviation IQ involves referencing intelligence against people of the same age.
  
  While 100 is average, deviations are expressed in terms of percentile rank. Effective for some academic purposes, IQ tests are poor at measuring creativity and inter-personal skills. IQ tests are copyrighted materials and are individually administered by trained professionals. IQ tests also measure in relation to a person's culture, making them region-specific.
IQ Scores and Corresponding Labels
- The "Wechsler" tests---the most commonly administered IQ test---label IQs at 115 as a "high average," score, beyond that and up to a 125 as "superior," and scores of 130 and higher as "genius" or "gifted." An IQ score of 50 is usually classified as mild to moderate mental retardation and a score or 25 usually signals severe mental retardation.
Characteristics of Persons with High IQ
- Some high IQ individuals might be labelled as "socially awkward," which might be attributed to their enhanced mental stature in certain subjects, secluding them from others. An enhanced vocabulary is also an indicator or an above average or high IQ. Constantly immersed in their thoughts, a high IQ individual might forget trivial things or seem distracted to outsiders. Possessing exceptional abilities at concentration, high IQ people are not likely to give up on a task or a problem until they are satisfied with results. With more of an aptitude to dislike routine jobs with set tasks---as well as the desire for constant improvement---high IQ people will often flock to challenging fields, including philosophy, entrepreneurship, medicine, law and business.
IQ and Success
- Although high IQs might be immediately associated with success, this does not necessarily hold true. Books---such as "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell---discuss IQ less as a determining factor for success compared with practice or experience in a given subject or field. Gladwell speculates that an above average IQ helps, but once an "intelligence threshold" is reached, an even higher IQ offers no advantages.

Nature