So what if I’m not good at item patterns?

Unfortunately getting questions wrong on an intelligence test because it is culturally biased and not because one is less intelligent can happen frequently for minorities. In this case the test in inappropriate for a certain audience, when it does not test properly what it is intended to test such as intelligence of knowledge because the questions are biased by a culture the test taker is unfamiliar with. This bias penalizes a certain group of people and is of great concern to test makers.

For example, not being able to perform to their capacities because of problems with comprehension due to their culture or language which differs from the test. This form of bias does exist in standardized tests and can be harmful when the results may determine the future of the test taker. For instance, a standardized test can affect someone’s future by limiting college or work opportunities if it is badly assessed.

Previously there was a hope of developing a test free of all biases, including cultural biases. Clearly evidence has shown the difficulty (and not to be pessimistic, but the impossibility) in accomplishing such a task. Indeed, there was an attempt to reduce the need of language by developing tests using demonstrations and images. For example, the inclusion of nonverbal tasks for intelligence tests such as the Raven’s Progressive Matrices was to avoid culturally bound test questions. However, it is now seen as culturally loaded as well. It would seem that matrices are cultural constructs which might be absent in other cultures, which might not have the same type of formal schooling. In North America the educational curriculum teaches skills of organizing items which would give an advantage over others. Moreover, certain technologies such as television and video games could give an advantage on visual tasks in tests compared to others who live in cultures where the media is mainly language-based. The latter would have an advantage over verbal tasks.

Indeed, translating the test to the local language is clearly not sufficient, it would be necessary to tailor it to the specific culture. However this might not be feasible in most situations… Thus, one should be careful when interpreting the results of these tests.

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