# The concept of intelligence: answers and explanations

Cambridge IELTS 14, Test 3, Reading Passage 1

Source: Passage, questions and answer key from Cambridge IELTS 14, Test 3, Reading Passage 1. © Cambridge University Press & Assessment. Used for educational practice. Explanations and evidence notes are written by Testmigo.

## Answer key

| Q | Answer | Proof |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | B | Job interviewers will make hiring decisions on the basis of their implicit theories of intelligence. ... People will decide who to be friends with on the basis of such theories. |
| 2 | A | no one knows for certain what it actually is |
| 3 | D | reveals little correspondence between the extant implicit and explicit theories |
| 4 | NOT GIVEN | parents' implicit theories of their children's language development will determine at what ages they will be willing to make various corrections |
| 5 | NO | How these expectations differ is in part a function of culture. |
| 6 | YES | they are likely to miss the point of what others are saying when discussing their explicit theories and their data |
| 7 | B | The Jeffersonian view is that people should have equal opportunities |
| 8 | C | we do not need or want any institutions that might lead to favoring one group over another |
| 9 | B | People are rewarded for what they accomplish, if given equal opportunity. |
| 10 | A | people are born with different levels of intelligence |
| 11 | A | those who are less intelligent need the good offices of the more intelligent to keep them in line |
| 12 | C | people are essentially intersubstitutable except for specialized skills, all of which can be learned |
| 13 | A | Left to themselves, the unintelligent would create, as they always have created, a kind of chaos. |

## Why these answers are right

**1. B.** You need the section where ordinary people's beliefs about intelligence shape how they treat others. Section B shows parents, job interviewers and people choosing friends all acting on their implicit theories, which is exactly non-scientists' assumptions guiding behavior toward other people.

**2. A.** The statement asks where the writer admits nobody is sure what intelligence is. Section A says everyone has unconscious notions of intelligence but no one knows for certain what it actually is, which is a direct reference to an unclear definition, so the answer is A.

**3. D.** Look for a gap between the two kinds of theory. Section D describes an investigation that reveals little correspondence between existing implicit and explicit theories, and then discusses which one might be wrong. Little correspondence paraphrases very different, so D is the section.

The why and the trap for questions 4 onwards are free with an account on the [answers page](https://testmigo.com/ielts/reading/the-concept-of-intelligence/answers).

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