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Documentation · 1954

Lorge-Thorndike Intelligence Tests: Dominant school IQ test of mid-century

The dominant US group IQ test for school-age children from 1954 through the 1970s. 7 forms covering grades K through college, with both Verbal and Nonverbal batteries. Group-administered, scored by machine, normed on hundreds of thousands of students. Renamed Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAT) in 1968.

Read About the Test

About the Lorge-Thorndike Intelligence Tests

In 1954 Irving Lorge (Columbia Teachers College) and Robert L. Thorndike (son of Edward L. Thorndike, also at Columbia) published the Lorge-Thorndike Intelligence Tests. Houghton Mifflin distributed them to US schools. Within 5 years they were the most-used group intelligence test for grades K-12.

The test had 7 levels (Primary 1 for K-1, Primary 2 for 2-3, then Multi-Level Editions for grades 3-13) and separate Verbal and Nonverbal batteries. The Verbal battery had vocabulary, sentence completion, verbal classification, verbal analogies, and arithmetic reasoning. The Nonverbal battery had figure classification, figure analogies, and figure analysis.

In 1968 the test was renamed the Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAT) with updated norms. CogAT has continued through CogAT Form 7 (2011) and Form 8 (in development), now published by Riverside Insights. The original 1954 Lorge-Thorndike norms are obsolete but the 7-subtest verbal+nonverbal structure has been preserved through all revisions. CogAT is currently used in many US gifted-program selection processes.

Copyright note: Lorge-Thorndike/CogAT items are copyrighted (Riverside Insights). We document the test's history and format.

The 7 subtests

#1
Vocabulary (Verbal) Pick word with similar meaning.
Copyrighted
#2
Sentence Completion (Verbal) Fill in the blank.
Copyrighted
#3
Verbal Classification Find the word that belongs with a group.
Copyrighted
#4
Verbal Analogies A:B :: C:?
Copyrighted
#5
Arithmetic Reasoning Word problems.
Copyrighted
#6
Figure Classification (Nonverbal) Find the figure that belongs with a group.
Copyrighted
#7
Figure Analogies (Nonverbal) Visual analogies.
Copyrighted

Sample Items (Illustrative)

Items are typically multiple-choice questions, with one correct answer among four options. They are scored based on the accuracy of the selected response.

Sample 1 · Vocabulary (Verbal)
Select the word that has a similar meaning to 'elated'.A) SadB) JoyfulC) AngryD) Tired
Example response: B) Joyful
Sample 2 · Sentence Completion (Verbal)
The cat ___ on the windowsill, basking in the warm sunlight.A) satB) ranC) barkedD) flew
Example response: A) sat
Sample 3 · Verbal Classification
Which word belongs with the group? Apple, Banana, Orange, ___A) CarrotB) GrapeC) PotatoD) Bread
Example response: B) Grape
Sample 4 · Verbal Analogies
Cat : Kitten :: Dog : ___A) PuppyB) CubC) CalfD) Foal
Example response: A) Puppy
Sample 5 · Arithmetic Reasoning
If a train travels 60 miles in 1 hour, how far will it travel in 3 hours?A) 120 milesB) 180 milesC) 200 milesD) 240 miles
Example response: B) 180 miles
Sample 6 · Figure Classification (Nonverbal)
Select the figure that belongs with the group: [Image of three triangles, one square]A) CircleB) TriangleC) HexagonD) Rectangle
Example response: B) Triangle
Sample 7 · Figure Analogies (Nonverbal)
Figure A is to Figure B as Figure C is to ___ [Image of two shapes showing a transformation, followed by a third shape and four options].
Example response: The correct option that shows a similar transformation to the one between Figure A and Figure B

These are illustrative samples, not actual items from the protected test.

Source

All test materials and historical content on this page are transcribed from:

Lorge, I. & Thorndike, R.L. (1954). The Lorge-Thorndike Intelligence Tests. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

The Lorge-Thorndike was published by Houghton Mifflin, later renamed CogAT in 1968. Currently published as CogAT-7 (2011) by Riverside Insights. The 1954 items are copyrighted (Riverside).

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