Sunday, April 5, 2009

Things I never said

A blogger and businessman has posted a statement attributed to me that simply is not something that I said, ever would say.  The statement by itself is not that offensive - but I do not agree with it, and I want to explain why. The false statement posted on the other blog is that "according to research" (that he said I did) "the average IQ of the dyslexic is 117 points." 

Here's the problem: I'm an author, and the only "research" I have ever done into dyslexia is reading and writing about the research of others. I have written two books and certainly did extensive "research" for both of them, but I don't believe that I have read or found any report, anywhere, of an "average" IQ for dyslexics. I would be very skeptical if any such report was made, because dyslexia in the past was often diagnosed by looking for a significant discrepency between IQ scores and reading ability -- but that method of diagnosis or labeling has pretty much been abandoned. So if someone (not me) ever claimed that the "average" IQ was 117, that could be the result of a flawed data due to flawed diagnostic criteria. 

In any case, I really don't believe in the whole concept of IQ as some hard measurable number. So while I might quote a range for some purpose or another, I don't think I'd be caught dead making a statement about an "average" as specific as 117 (as if there is some magic difference between someone who scores 116 or 118 on the same test). 

Don't get me wrong: the smartest people I know are dyslexic.  My own experience is that dyslexics better, faster, more creative problem solvers than just about anyone else.  I just don't buy into this whole IQ business. The truth is that I hate the whole concept of IQ testing, at least with the idea that you can assign a number that measures how smart a person is, the same way you can measure how much the person weighs.  I think "IQ" is a flawed idea based on flawed methodology and flawed assumptions.  And historically it has been used in ways that have done a lot of harm to whichever children (or adults) don't happen to score as well on IQ tests.

To anyone who is reading this: I have written two books and published many articles.   I don't mind when people quote me accurately -- and you can quote from this blog as well. . But please do not guess at what I might say, or make something up, without asking my permission. I don't mind being quoted; I just don't like being misquoted.