IQ

CAT 2020 Slot 1 · VARC · Medium · Verbal Ability

The passage given below is followed by four alternate summaries. Choose the option that best captures the essence of the passage.

For nearly a century most psychologists have embraced one view of intelligence. Individuals are born with more or less intelligence potential (I.Q.); this potential is heavily influenced by heredity and difficult to alter; experts in measurement can determine a person's intelligence early in life, currently from paper-and-pencil measures, perhaps eventually from examining the brain in action or even scrutinizing his/her genome. Recently, criticism of this conventional wisdom has mounted. Biologists ask if speaking of a single entity called "intelligence" is coherent and question the validity of measures used to estimate heritability of a trait in humans, who, unlike plants or animals, are not conceived and bred under controlled conditions.

  1. A.

    Biologists have questioned the long-standing view that 'intelligence' is a single entity and the attempts to estimate its heritability.

  2. B.

    Biologists have questioned the view that 'intelligence' is a single entity and the ways in which what is inherited.

  3. C.

    Biologists have criticised that conventional wisdom that individuals are born with more or less intelligence potential.

  4. D.

    Biologists have started questioning psychologists' view of 'intelligence' as a measurable immutable characteristic of an individual.

Answer

A

Explanation

The paragraph contrasts the traditional psychological view of IQ as a single heritable trait with recent biological criticism. The core criticism is whether 'intelligence' is a single entity and whether heritability measures are valid in humans. Option A captures both key aspects accurately.

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