Q at Ellis Island: In 1917, a group of American psychologists administered the Binet-Simon IQ test to Europeans immigrating to the U.S. through Ellis Island. They wrote a widely-distributed report on their findings. A table from that report is displayed above. Here’s a quote from the report’s summary: “One can hardly escape the conviction that the intelligence of the average ‘third class’ immigrant is low, perhaps of moron grade.” What evidence from the table lends support to the author’s conclusion?
The table displays the percentage of immigrants in each class (first, second, and third) that scored low on the IQ test. The percentage of third class immigrants scoring low on the IQ test is significantly higher compared to first and second class immigrants. This data suggests that the average intelligence level of third class immigrants is lower, potentially at the level of "moron grade." This evidence supports the author's conclusion that the intelligence of the average 'third class' immigrant is low.
