"Recently, as a result of the controversies surrounding group and racial differences in intelligence as well as the social and political implications of these differences, the study of intelligence has become a topic of concern to educators and psychologists.
The purpose of this book is to provide an overview of the field of intelligence to present a balanced account of the major issues.
Chapter 1 serves as the introduction in which the historical development of tests of intelligence and the pioneering work of Spearman and Thurstone are discussed. In Chapter 2 the results of some 70 years of statistically oriented research on the structure of intelligence are considered. The research as presented tends to justify the use of a single numerical index for intelligence test scores. Specific attention is given in Chapter 3 to the quantitative properties of the numerical index and its stability and change over time. Chapters 4 through 6 further develop the meaning of the numerical index by examining its antecedents and consequents. Specifically, Chapter 4 deals with variables, such as education and occupational status, that are assumed to be influenced by intelligence. Chapter 5 addresses the controversial issues surrounding the biological and social determinants of intelligence. The relationships between intelligence test scores and race, family size, and birth order are discussed in Chapter 6. Finally, in Chapter 7 we discuss the uses of intelligence tests and conclude with a skeptical analysis of the utility of such tests."