Assignment:
Intelligence testing and cultural competence
There always error in every test when there are multiple cultural influences in a unique population group. Sometimes specific tests need to be tailored to that group. That is where the training to completely understand a test comes in: examiner competence. "Examiner Competence" is an ethical standard in psychological testing. The differences between people, technology, and culture make it very difficult to create any test for everyone across the country. I really notice a difference in "street smarts" between the kids who have been given everything and the kids who need to entertain themselves. Your area of the country may be slightly different from other areas of the country. In the social sciences, when completing a pilot study, the rule of thumb is 30 or more participants. But, that test will only be valid in the area where the norming sample was selected (Hogan, 2007). There are some tests that have few people typical for my area of the country, so the school psychologists have gotten together to create "local norms". This is a way to decide if our students who have unique experiences to our area are "normal" for kids in their situation.
We have many students illegally here and their parents sometimes just disappear one day because they have been picked up and deported. The children are left at school because their parents are gone! This is of course traumatizing for the kids. The nationally normed tests for childhood depression might not be a perfect fit for this area, so we created our own norms. It is these same kids, however who seem to have the best social problem-solving skills. It really is weird trying to believe what it really means to be "intelligent".
A "validity" statement must be made in a report of the assessment outlining and threats to the validity of the test such as cultural bias.
What kinds of test might be needed in your area of the world?