Ethnic Differences in IQ Scores: What Do They Mean? (a Response to Lloyd Dunn)

This article responds to Dunn's conclusion that HispanicAnglo differences in IQ scores are due to genetic differences in intelligence. Several studies that look at between group variance in IQ scores for blacks, Angles and Hispanics are reviewed. It is concluded that sociocultural factors are important contributors to such variances. The adequate interpretation in educational practice of IQ scores is also discussed. Finally, instruments that use different sociocultural norms for different ethnic groups to make inferences about an individual's intelligence, such as the System of Multicultural Pluralistic Assessment (SOMPA) and the WISC-R are presented.