The Wonderlic Contemporary Cognitive Ability Test (formerly Wonderlic Personnel Test) is an assessment used to measure the
cognitive ability
Cognitive skills, also called cognitive functions, cognitive abilities or cognitive capacities, are brain-based skills which are needed in acquisition of knowledge, manipulation of information and reasoning. They have more to do with the mechanisms ...
and problem-solving
aptitude
An aptitude is a component of a competence to do a certain kind of work at a certain level. Outstanding aptitude can be considered "talent". Aptitude is inborn potential to perform certain kinds of activities, whether physical or mental, and ...
of prospective employees for a range of occupations. It is a proprietary assessment created and distributed by Wonderlic. It consists of 50 multiple choice questions to be answered in 12 minutes.
The test was created in 1939 by Eldon F. Wonderlic (19091980), while he was a graduate student at
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world.
Charte ...
.
The score is calculated as the number of correct answers given in the allotted time. A score of 20 is intended to indicate average
intelligence
Intelligence has been defined in many ways: the capacity for abstraction, logic, understanding, self-awareness, learning, emotional knowledge, reasoning, planning, creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving. More generally, it can b ...
.
The most recent version of the test is WonScore, a cloud-based assessment providing a score to potential employers. The Wonderlic test was based on the Otis Self-Administering Test of Mental Ability with the goal of creating a short form measurement of cognitive ability.
It may be termed as a quick IQ test.
History
Created in 1936 by E. F. Wonderlic, the Wonderlic Personnel Test was the first short-form cognitive abilities test.
It was developed to measure
general cognitive ability in the areas of
math
Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...
,
vocabulary
A vocabulary is a set of familiar words within a person's language. A vocabulary, usually developed with age, serves as a useful and fundamental tool for communication and acquiring knowledge. Acquiring an extensive vocabulary is one of the la ...
, and
reasoning
Reason is the capacity of consciously applying logic by drawing conclusions from new or existing information, with the aim of seeking the truth. It is closely associated with such characteristically human activities as philosophy, science, lang ...
.
Wonderlic created and distributed the test as a graduate student in the psychology department at
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world.
Charte ...
.
Regarding the time allotted to take the test, Wonderlic, in an article released in 1939, stated that "the length of the test was made such that only about two to five per cent of average groups complete the test in the twelve-minute time limit."
Originally designed to aid in employee selection at companies such as
AT&T
AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications holding company headquartered at Whitacre Tower in Downtown Dallas, Texas. It is the world's largest telecommunications company by revenue and the third largest provider of mobile tel ...
and
Oscar Meyer in the 1940s, the Wonderlic Personnel Test has been used by both the
United States Armed Forces
The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is the ...
and the
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
. During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, the
Navy
A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...
began using the Wonderlic Personnel Test to select candidates for
pilot
An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...
training
Training is teaching, or developing in oneself or others, any skills and knowledge or Physical fitness, fitness that relate to specific practicality, useful Competence (human resources), competencies. Training has specific goals of improving on ...
and
navigation
Navigation is a field of study that focuses on the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another.Bowditch, 2003:799. The field of navigation includes four general categories: land navigation, ...
. From 1940–1960 the test was supplied for free as the data was valuable to E. F. Wonderlic. In the 1970s
Tom Landry
Thomas Wade Landry (September 11, 1924 – February 12, 2000) was an American professional football player and coach. He was the first head coach of the Dallas Cowboys in the National Football League (NFL), a position he held for 29 seasons. Dur ...
, coach of the
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...
, was the first to use the Wonderlic Personnel Test to predict player performance.
It is still used in the annual
NFL Combine
The NFL Scouting Combine is a week-long showcase occurring every February at Lucas Oil Stadium (and formerly at the RCA Dome until 2008) in Indianapolis, where college football players perform physical and mental tests in front of National Footba ...
as a form of pre-draft assessment.
The Wonderlic test is continually being updated with repeated evaluations of questions.
Also, beginning in the 1970s, Wonderlic began to develop other forms of the Wonderlic Personnel, some of which include: Wonderlic Perceptual Ability Tests, Wonderlic Scholastic Level Exam, or the Wonderlic Contemporary Cognitive Ability Test.
Other Wonderlic Tests
The tests are divided into three different types:
cognitive
Cognition refers to "the mental action or process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and the senses". It encompasses all aspects of intellectual functions and processes such as: perception, attention, thought, ...
ability, personality, and motivation.
Cognitive Ability
Released in the 1990s, the Wonderlic Personnel Test measures an individual's capability of solving problems and learning. The Wonderlic Personnel Test has two different forms: the Wonderlic Personnel Test--Quicktest (30 questions in 8 minutes) and the Wonderlic Personnel Test (50 questions, 12 minutes). The Wonderlic Personnel Test--Quicktest differs from the Wonderlic Personnel Test in that it is not proctored. The Wonderlic Personnel Test is a much more comprehensive test.
The Wonderlic SLE is the scholastic version of the Wonderlic Personnel Test and is commonly administered to nursing school and medical program applicants.
Personality
The Wonderlic Personality tests measure personal characteristics that are widely accepted as being predictive of a candidate's expected
job performance
Job performance assesses whether a person performs a job well. Job performance, studied academically as part of industrial and organizational psychology, also forms a part of human resources management. Performance is an important criterion for org ...
. Wonderlic claims that using the Wonderlic Personality Test to select individuals whose traits are aligned with the demands of the position, employers can improve employee productivity, employee satisfaction and customer service while reducing recruitment costs and employee turnover.
Added during the 1990s, the Wonderlic Personality Test contains two sections. The Wonderlic Five-Factor Personality Profile and the Wonderlic Seven-Factor Personality Profile. The Wonderlic Five-Factor Personality Profile tests individuals on five primary dimensions of the individual's personality:
extraversion
The traits of extraversion (also spelled extroversion Retrieved 2018-02-21.) and introversion are a central dimension in some human personality theories. The terms ''introversion'' and ''extraversion'' were introduced into psychology by Carl J ...
,
agreeableness
Agreeableness is a personality trait manifesting itself in individual behavioral characteristics that are perceived as kind, sympathetic, cooperative, warm, and considerate. In contemporary personality psychology, agreeableness is one of the five ...
,
conscientiousness
Conscientiousness is the personality trait of being careful, or diligent. Conscientiousness implies a desire to do a task well, and to take obligations to others seriously. Conscientious people tend to be efficient and organized as opposed to ...
,
emotional stability/neuroticism, and
openness to experience
Openness to experience is one of the domains which are used to describe human personality in the Five Factor Model. Openness involves six facets, or dimensions: active imagination (fantasy), aesthetic sensitivity, attentiveness to inner feelings, ...
. These are essentially the same
constructs as the
Big Five personality traits
The Big Five personality traits is a suggested taxonomy, or grouping, for personality traits, developed from the 1980s onward in psychological trait theory.
Starting in the 1990s, the theory identified five factors by labels, for the US English ...
, also known as the Five Factor Model.
Motivation
Averaging 10–15 minutes, the 58-item assessment is based on the Holland/RIASEC workplace motivation model. It evaluates a candidate’s interests, which helps predict how motivated they will be by the actual responsibilities of the job. The more motivated they are by those responsibilities, the likelier they will succeed in that position.
Sample questions
Similar to other
standardized test
A standardized test is a test that is administered and scored in a consistent, or "standard", manner. Standardized tests are designed in such a way that the questions and interpretations are consistent and are administered and scored in a predete ...
s, the Wonderlic Cognitive Ability Test presents its questions in an open response.
The types of questions that have appeared in the oldest versions of the Wonderlic test include:
analogies
Analogy (from Greek ''analogia'', "proportion", from ''ana-'' "upon, according to" lso "against", "anew"+ ''logos'' "ratio" lso "word, speech, reckoning" is a cognitive process of transferring information or meaning from a particular subject ( ...
, analysis of geometric figures,
arithmetic
Arithmetic () is an elementary part of mathematics that consists of the study of the properties of the traditional operations on numbers— addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, exponentiation, and extraction of roots. In the 19th ...
, direction following, disarranged sentences,
judgment
Judgement (or US spelling judgment) is also known as ''adjudication'', which means the evaluation of evidence to decision-making, make a decision. Judgement is also the ability to make considered decisions. The term has at least five distinct u ...
,
logic
Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the science of deductively valid inferences or of logical truths. It is a formal science investigating how conclusions follow from premises ...
,
proverb matching, similarities, and word definitions. However, the questions may take different angles depending upon the ‘intelligence’ of the question setters.
Practice questions will include:
* If a piece of rope cost 20 cents per 2 feet, how many feet can you buy for 30 dollars?
* Which of the numbers in this group represents the smallest amount? a) 0.3 b) 0.08 c) 1 d) 0.33
* A high-speed train travels 25 feet in 1/3 second. In 4 seconds, the train will have traveled __?__ feet.
* A clock lost 2 minutes and 36 seconds in 78 days. How many seconds did it lose per day?
Application to industrial-organizational psychology
The Wonderlic test, as a vocational and intelligence test, falls under the field of Industrial and Organizational Psychology. As a personnel test the Wonderlic is used to gauge an applicant's job potential, educational potential, and training potential.
Six forms of this test are made available (A, B, C, D, E, and F) in which Wonderlic suggests that when two of these versions are to be used, the best combinations are A and B or D and F.
[Kazmier, L.J. & Browne C.G.(1959). Comparability of Wonderlic test forms in industrial testing. Journal of Applied Psychology. 43(2):129–132.] However, a study conducted by psychologists Kazmier and Browne (1959) shows that neither of these forms can be regarded as directly equivalent.
While there is no lack of tests that could be used in place of the Wonderlic, such as the IQ or the Mechanical Aptitude Test, it is a quick and simple vocational test for personnel recruitment and selection.
The Wonderlic test has been peer reviewed by the
American Psychological Association
The American Psychological Association (APA) is the largest scientific and professional organization of psychologists in the United States, with over 133,000 members, including scientists, educators, clinicians, consultants, and students. It ha ...
and has been deemed worthy of field applications to the industrial use of personnel testing. Other sources can be found on the database APA PsycNET.
Reliability
In 1956, Weaver and Boneau reported in the ''
Journal of Applied Psychology
The ''Journal of Applied Psychology'' is a monthly, peer-reviewed academic journal published by the American Psychological Association. The journal emphasizes the publication of original investigations that contribute new knowledge and understandin ...
'' that two of the five forms, A and B, that were published at the time were harder than the others which caused scores on those forms to be significantly lower than scores obtained on forms C–F.
Concerning these observed differences, Weaver and Boneau state: "This accords with the history of the development of the test. Forms D, E, and F are made up of items selected from the Otis Higher, while A and B were developed later and include types of items not found in the Otis."
Those findings, seemingly, invalidate the claim that those forms were equivalent or consistent.
E. N. Hay made a similar observation as well. Hay found that form F was significantly easier than Form D. Furthermore, Kazmier found Form B to be the most difficult of the five forms and, thus, recommended that it "not be regarded as directly equivalent to any of the forms."
Kazmier also found Forms D and F to be significantly different from each other and recommended that these forms be regarded as inequivalent.
In a study of the Wonderlic's test-retest reliability, conducted in 1992, Stuart McKelvie "concluded that conscious repetition of specific responses did not seriously inflate the estimate of test-retest reliability."
To put it simply, one's memory of some of the answers does not significantly affect one's score on the Wonderlic.
In 1982, Carl Dodrill conducted a study in which 57 adults were administered the Wonderlic twice over a five-year period. In the ''
Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology
The ''Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology'' is a monthly academic journal published by the American Psychological Association. Its focus is on treatment and prevention in all areas of clinical and clinical-health psychology and especiall ...
'', Dodrill reported that the test-retest reliability for the Wonderlic was .94.
According to a 1989 article in ''
Psychological Reports
''Psychological Reports'' is a bimonthly peer-reviewed academic journal covering research in psychology and psychiatry. It was established by Robert and Carol H. Ammons in 1955. The editor-in-chief is Cory Scherer (Penn State Schuylkill). It is pub ...
'', the Wonderlic scored a r=.87 on the reliability scale compared along with the Pearson test score of r=.21.
Validity
In an article written in ''
Psychological Reports
''Psychological Reports'' is a bimonthly peer-reviewed academic journal covering research in psychology and psychiatry. It was established by Robert and Carol H. Ammons in 1955. The editor-in-chief is Cory Scherer (Penn State Schuylkill). It is pub ...
'', T. Matthews and Kerry Lassiter report that the Wonderlic test "was most strongly associated with overall intellectual functioning," which is what it is purported to measure.
However, Matthews and Lassiter did not find the Wonderlic to be a successful measure of
fluid and crystallized intelligence
The concepts of fluid intelligence (''g''f) and crystallized intelligence (''g''c) were introduced in 1963 by the psychologist Raymond Cattell. According to Cattell's psychometrically-based theory, general intelligence (''g'') is subdivided into ' ...
, and they stated that "the Wonderlic test scores did not clearly show convergent or divergent validity evidence across these two broad domains of cognitive ability."
In academic testing, the Wonderlic test has shown high correlations with aptitude tests such as the General Aptitude Test Battery.
A more recent study by Hicks and colleagues from the
Georgia Institute of Technology
The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...
similarly argued that evidence concerning the test's validity was limited. Their research showed "that Wonderlic has no direct relationship to fluid intelligence once its commonality to working memory capacity is accounted for", and that the Wonderlic "was a significant predictor of
working memory
Working memory is a cognitive system with a limited capacity that can hold information temporarily. It is important for reasoning and the guidance of decision-making and behavior. Working memory is often used synonymously with short-term memory, ...
capacity for subjects with low fluid intelligence, but failed to discriminate as well among subjects with high fluid intelligence". These findings suggest that the Wonderlic is less informative when administered to higher-than-average ability individuals or groups, meaning there is more measurement error and less practical utility in giving the test to individuals higher in cognitive ability. Partially on this basis, they argued that organizations interested in personnel selection should consider administering measures of established constructs that are grounded in a more theoretical framework, such as fluid intelligence or working memory capacity.
Legal matters
''Jordan v. New London''
In May 1997, Robert Jordan filed a lawsuit against the city of
New London, Connecticut
New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States, located at the mouth of the Thames River in New London County, Connecticut. It was one of the world's three busiest whaling ports for several decades ...
, alleging violation of the
Equal Protection Clause
The Equal Protection Clause is part of the first section of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The clause, which took effect in 1868, provides "''nor shall any State ... deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal ...
of the United States and Connecticut constitutions, in a case that was referred to by several media outlets as "Too Smart To Be A Cop", based on the city's application of scores generated by the Wonderlic test.
Jordan was born and raised in New London, and had previous experience in law enforcement, working as a part-time officer in near-by
Groton Long Point
Groton Long Point (GLP) is located within the town of Groton, on Fishers Island Sound, in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The year-round population was 518 at the 2010 census.
The area is administered by the Groton Long Point Ass ...
, and as a seasonal officer for the
Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection
The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) is a state agency in the US state of Connecticut. The department oversees the state's natural resources and environment and regulates public utilities and energy policy. It ...
. In fall 1996, Jordan requested an interview with Keith Harrigan, New London's Assistant City Manager in charge of personnel. Harrigan informed Jordan that he was ineligible because he scored too high on the written portion of the Wonderlic test intended to evaluate cognitive ability. New London had decided to consider only applicants who scored between 20 and 27 on the written examination. Jordan scored a 33 on the exam, the equivalent of having an IQ of 125.
Jordan filed suit in the
United States District Court for the District of Connecticut
The United States District Court for the District of Connecticut (in case citations, D. Conn.) is the federal district court whose jurisdiction is the state of Connecticut. The court has offices in Bridgeport, Hartford, and New Haven. Appeals ...
, where his case was dismissed by Judge Peter C. Dorsey, who noted: "The guarantee of equal protection under the Fifth Amendment is not a source of substantive rights or liberties, but rather a right to be free from invidious discrimination in statutory classifications and other governmental activity. It is well settled that where a statutory classification does not itself impinge on a right or liberty protected by the Constitution, the validity of the classification must be sustained unless the classification rests on grounds wholly irrelevant to the achievement of
ny legitimate governmentobjective....
ordanmay have been disqualified unwisely but he was not denied equal protection." The dismissal was upheld on appeal to the
United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (in case citations, 2d Cir.) is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals. Its territory comprises the states of Connecticut, New York and Vermont. The court has appellate juri ...
.
''Griggs v. Duke Power Co.''
Central tendency of Wonderlic scores
Serving as a quantitative measure for employers, scores are collected by the employers and the applicant's score may be compared to a professional standard, as is the case with security guards or, simply, compared to the scores of other applicants who happen to be applying for the same or similar positions at that time.
Each profession has its own, unique, average; therefore, different professions require different standards.
Wonderlic, Inc. claims a minimum score of 10 points suggests a person is
literate
Literacy in its broadest sense describes "particular ways of thinking about and doing reading and writing" with the purpose of understanding or expressing thoughts or ideas in written form in some specific context of use. In other words, huma ...
.
Average score in the NFL by position
The Wonderlic test is used in the
NFL Scouting Combine
The NFL Scouting Combine is a week-long showcase occurring every February at Lucas Oil Stadium (and formerly at the RCA Dome until 2008) in Indianapolis, where college football players perform physical and mental tests in front of National Footb ...
.
Paul Brown
Paul Eugene Brown (September 7, 1908 – August 5, 1991) was an American football coach and executive in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) and National Football League (NFL). Brown was both the co-founder and first coach of the Clevela ...
introduced the test to the league in the late 1960s.
According to
Paul Zimmerman's ''The New Thinking Man's Guide to Pro Football,'' the average score of an NFL player by position was:
*
Offensive tackle
Offensive may refer to:
* Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative
* Offensive (military), an attack
* Offensive language
** Fighting words or insulting language, words that by their very utterance inflict inj ...
– 26
*
Center
Center or centre may refer to:
Mathematics
*Center (geometry), the middle of an object
* Center (algebra), used in various contexts
** Center (group theory)
** Center (ring theory)
* Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...
– 25
*
Quarterback
The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...
– 24
*
Guard
Guard or guards may refer to:
Professional occupations
* Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault
* Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street
* Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning
* Prison ...
– 23
*
Tight end
The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like ...
– 22
*
Safety
Safety is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to risk management, the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk.
Meanings
There are ...
– 19
*
Linebacker
Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, p ...
– 19
*
Cornerback
A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such offensive running plays as sweeps and reverses. They create tur ...
– 18
*
Wide receiver – 17
*
Fullback – 17
*
Halfback – 16
An average football player usually scores around 20 points.
Quarterbacks and offensive linemen usually have higher scores. Most teams want at least 21 for a quarterback.
Predictor of success in the NFL
John P. Lopez of ''
Sports Illustrated
''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twic ...
'' proposed a 26–27–60 rule to predict a quarterback's success in the NFL (at least a 26 on the Wonderlic, at least 27 college starts, and at least 60%
pass completion) and listed several examples of successes and failures based on the rule.
A 2005 study by McDonald Mirabile found that there is no significant correlation between a quarterback's Wonderlic score and a quarterback's passer rating, and no significant correlation between a quarterback's Wonderlic score and a quarterback's salary.
Similarly, a 2009 study by Brian D. Lyons, Brian J. Hoffman, and John W. Michel found that Wonderlic scores failed to positively and significantly predict future NFL performance, draft position, or the number of games started for any position.
Lyons said that Wonderlic's "limited return on investment" for the NFL is contrary to
general mental ability
The ''g'' factor (also known as general intelligence, general mental ability or general intelligence factor) is a construct developed in psychometric investigations of cognitive abilities and human intelligence. It is a variable that summarizes ...
being a very strong predictor of job performance for most careers; "because it's so physically based, the results point to that
MAreally doesn't matter".
Donovan McNabb
Donovan Jamal McNabb (born November 25, 1976) is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for thirteen seasons, primarily with the Philadelphia Eagles. Before his NFL career, he played football and b ...
, whose score was the lowest of the five quarterbacks taken in the first round of the
1999 NFL Draft
The 1999 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 17–18, 1999, at the Theater at M ...
, had the longest and most successful career.
The Lyons study also found that the relationship between Wonderlic test scores and future NFL performance was negative for a few positions, indicating the higher a player scores on the Wonderlic test, the worse the player will perform in the NFL.
According to
Pat McInally
John Patrick McInally (born May 7, 1953) is an American former football player who was a punter and wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League (NFL).
McInally was enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame i ...
, who was selected by the
Cincinnati Bengals
The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The c ...
in the fifth round of the
1975 NFL Draft
The 1975 National Football League draft was held January 28–29, 1975, at the New York Hilton at Rockefeller Center in New York City, New York. With the first overall pick of the draft, the Atlanta Falcons selected quarterback Steve Bartko ...
,
George Young told him that his perfect score caused him to be selected later than he would have otherwise.
NFL reporter Matt Verderame reported that
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...
offensive lineman
Joe Thuney avoided answering Wonderlic questions so he would not score too high. McInally speculated that "coaches and front-office guys don't like extremes one way or the other, but particularly not on the high side. I think they think guys who are intelligent will challenge authority too much".
Mike Florio of
Profootballtalk.com agreed with McInally:
Job performance
Job performance assesses whether a person performs a job well. Job performance, studied academically as part of industrial and organizational psychology, also forms a part of human resources management. Performance is an important criterion for org ...
in the NFL also includes deviance. A 2016 study found that the Wonderlic significantly predicted future arrests, referred to as criminal off-duty deviance, with players testing below the league average being almost twice as likely to get arrested in the future as players who scored above the league average.
''See
National Football League player conduct controversy
On April 10, 2007, the National Football League (NFL) introduced a new conduct policy to help control on and off-field behavior by its players and preserve the league's public image.Associated PressGoodell strengthens NFL player conduct policy''U ...
.''
In popular culture
A simplified and condensed version of the Wonderlic test appeared in older editions of the ''
Madden NFL
''Madden NFL'' (known as ''John Madden Football'' until 1993) is an American football video game series developed by EA Tiburon for EA Sports. It is named after Pro Football Hall of Fame coach and commentator John Madden and sold more than 130 m ...
'' video game series.
The ''Madden'' version of the test is taken in "Superstar Mode" portion of the game, to make the game experience more realistic, although, it is now optional. The questions usually consist of basic
math
Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...
and English questions. For example, "If
Adrian Peterson
Adrian Lewis Peterson (born March 21, 1985) is an American football running back who is a free agent. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest running backs in football history. He played college football at Oklahoma, where he set the ...
rushes for 125 yards in a game, how many yards will he have at the end of the season if he keeps up with this pace?". Players have four answers to choose from when taking this version of the test.
[EA Sports (2005). "NFL Superstar", ''Madden NFL 2006 (manual)'' (in English). Electronic Arts, page 11.]
References
External links
*
*
*
{{Psychology
Wonderlic
The Wonderlic Contemporary Cognitive Ability Test (formerly Wonderlic Personnel Test) is an assessment used to measure the cognitive ability and problem-solving aptitude of prospective employees for a range of occupations. It is a proprietary ...
Intelligence tests
Industrial and organizational psychology