How to Easily Construct a Very Brief Practical Measure of IQ

The Pernambuco Adult Intelligence Mini Test

Abstract

The present paper demonstrates the use of a small set of school-like questions to create a very brief, practical, and accurate measure of general intelligence. This is done through the Pernambuco Adult Intelligence Mini Test (PAIMT), a one-to-one, face-to-face instrument applicable in outdoor settings in five minutes or less by non-experts with minimal training. It is comprised of items from two previous tests and standardized into an IQ through a sample of 1,254 individuals from 46 municipalities in the state of Pernambuco, Brazil, in 2011, and construct-validated and evaluated for Flynn Effect through data from 4,201 adults collected between 2011 and 2019. The PAIMT IQ was found to be a Gaussian and unidimensional construct associated with multiple other variables similar to IQ. This approach can produce flexible, reliable, and valid measures of intelligence that are easily adapted and normed for use in various contexts.