Question for ILIs and whoever else reads this

[Sumdumho]

My results from online tests have ranged from 90 to 160. Most of the online IQ tests seem to be boosted by 20-30 points and give out 120-140 scores to majority of people who take them. I'm not sure why they boost the scores so much - perhaps to make people return to their page and recommend the test to friends? - but it's rather common to see somebody post up an online test and the follow-up responses are usually in 120-140 range, which is not possible since the average is 100 points.

This "real-life functional level" chart seems to be more accurate for estimating one's IQ range: https://paulcooijmans.com/intelligence/iq_ranges.html It allows you to figure out your IQ based on where your see yourself being at an optimal level of performance, and where you'd start to feel challenged. So if you can see yourself getting a PhD in something like physical sciences, being a prolific author or a professor in some specialty field, your IQ is probably over 130 points. If you see yourself getting a masters degree but would feel challenged earning a PhD, then you're probably in the 115-130 range. If you're struggling with college level material then your iQ is probably lower than 115. The same extends to what kind of employment you see as being optimal for yourself. And so on.


100-109 — Average: Able to learn from written materials. Employable in senior positions.

110-119 — Above average: Able to learn in "college" format. Bachelor degrees. Manager, teacher, accountant. Just capable of taking high-range I.Q. tests.

120-129 — Above average: Capable of gathering and inferring own information. Master degrees. Attorney, chemist, executive. About 93 % of high-range test candidates score I.Q. 120 or higher.

130-139 — "Gifted": May just be able to write a legible piece of text like an article or modest novel. Minor literary figures. Ph.D. in the "soft" sciences. In this range lies the mode of scores on high-range tests, and almost 80 % of high-range candidates score I.Q. 130 or higher. Regular psychology's I.Q. tests should not be trusted beyond this range as their validity breaks down here, if such scores are given at all.

140-149 — Intelligent: Capable of rational communication and scientific work. From this range on, only specific high-range tests should be considered. Important scientific discoveries and advancement are possible from the upper part of this range on.

Literally just came here to say that Paul Cooijmans is a complete wackadoodle and anything he says should be taken with a grain of salt, or 10 billion.

Most of the tests available on his site have subjective answers, are limited by human error of the writer, or require a high degree of crystalized intelligence in certain areas.

I don't know and don't care what my IQ is, most people who hang out on the internet tend to be slightly above average and there are smart and dumb examples of all types. Don't feed into this nonsense and don't use it to type yourself.