Stability of intelligence: A 40-year follow-up.

Readministered the Revised Examination "M," a measure of intelligence, to 260 men approximately 40 yrs after they had received this test as World War II army recruits. Their average age and educational level was 64.7 yrs and Grade 8.7, respectively. Three sets of scores were compared: those obtained at the time of army enlistment; current scores obtained within the regular time limits of the test; and current scores obtained within double the test's regular time limits. Results indicate a reliable but minor decline in total score in the regular speeded condition and a reliable improvement over wartime total scores in the double-time conditions. Test–retest correlation coefficients, in general, attested to the long-term stability of individual differences among members of the sample. (French abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)