Online cognitive ability tests – the Adaptive Vocabulary Test

Szilvia Fodor and Balázs Klein have recently released their article about the Hungarian Templeton Program in the Hungarian Journal of Psychology. The program has proved to be effective in talent recognition. Online ability tests were used to identify participants’ cognitive functions (fluid and crystallized intelligence, work memory, complex problem solving). The ITR (item response theory) based adaptive test algorithm applied in the program is one of psychometry’s most modern innovations. The algorithm takes the incoming answer’s exactness into account and chooses a question from the question bank that is of similar difficulty. Using adaptive tests make the process smoother and more enjoyable. There is no fixed answer key, therefore it is not possible to learn the answers beforehand.

Fluid intelligence is an ability which we use when solving new problems. It can be measured with non-verbal, inductive thinking exercises. Balázs Klein’s Adaptive Intelligence Test is a good example of this type of test, which is sometimes used by SHL Hungary Ltd. and Accessassessment Ltd. to select workers (with other tests).

Crystallized intelligence refers to the ability of how well we can use previously acquired knowledge. Vocabulary tests and text interpretation tests are the most suitable for measuring this ability. In Templeton Program, Balázs Klein’s Adaptive Vocabulary Test was used for this purpose. SHL Hungary Ltd. and Accessassessment Ltd. also uses this test for selection. The predecessor of the test (which was a paper/pencil test) was developed by J. E. Raven (and the Hungarian version by Balázs Klein) decades ago. Balázs Klein has not followed the traditional format where participants had to find a synonym from the listed possibilities – he arranged words with similar meanings into groups of nine, and participants were asked to choose two words that were the closest in their meaning. With this, guessing effects and cheating possibilities were reduced during unsupervised testing. The test measures how well the participant can identify meanings. This ability is useful in all situations where verbal or written communication is emphasized. The test consists of 25 exercises and it requires about 15 minutes to complete.

Templeton Program has provided empirical experience of a a theoretically valid, complex, online talent recognizing system, and it has also suggested concrete guidelines when applying these methods, which can be a starting pont to develop similar measuring processes in the future. The adaptive tests used during the program can be applied in recruitment, because they are reliable in identifying an individual’s abilities.