The major advantage of using the ratio method of computing IQ, rather than reporting only a child's mental age, is which of the following?
A) The ratio method provides a more accurate method of measuring mental age.
B) The ratio method allows for children of different chronological ages to be compared more meaningfully.
C) The ratio method provides a less racially biased method of measuring mental age.
D) The ratio method provides a less racially biased method of computing IQ.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Reporting only mental age does not provide any information about chronological age, thus there is no basis for comparing a child to same-age peers. For example, two children who have a mental age of 9 might be the same age or might be of very different ages. The IQ method converts mental age by dividing it by chronological age. Therefore, IQ allows for comparisons of same-age children with respect to intelligence (as measured by their mental ages). For example, if two 9-year-olds have IQs of 90 and 100, respectively, we know that the child with the higher IQ scored higher relative to his age-peers than did the child with the IQ of 90.

The Major Advantage of Using the Ratio Method of Computing