Why did Binet create an intelligence test?

The French government commissioned Binet to identify children with intellectual disabilities who needed special education programs.

What was novel about Binet's approach?

Binet focused on practical reasoning and judgment rather than physical or anatomical measures, establishing modern intelligence testing foundations.

Binet's concept of mental age compared a child's performance to age-level benchmarks, forming the basis of the IQ ratio calculation.

Lewis Terman adapted it for American schools (Stanford-Binet), and it became the foundation for all modern IQ testing.

Peter Kolomiets

|March 17, 2026|Updated Apr 13, 2026|7 min read

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Binet, A. & Simon, T.. Binet, A. & Simon, T. (1905). The Development of Intelligence in Children
Gould, S. J.. Gould, S. J. (1981). The Mismeasure of Man
Deary, I. J.. Deary, I. J. (2001). Intelligence: A Very Short Introduction

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IQ testing evolved from Binet and Simon's 1905 work through Terman's Stanford-Binet and Wechsler's multidimensional approach to today's assessments.

The Stanford-Binet scale, revised multiple times since 1916, remains one of the most respected standardized IQ tests for children and adults.