mental age
Developmental level measured
Mental age is a measure of intellectual development expressed as the age at which an average person would demonstrate the same level of cognitive ability.
The concept emerged from early intelligence testing: if a child performs on tests at the level typical of eight-year-olds, their mental age is eight, regardless of their actual chronological age.
The test indicated a mental age of twelve.
The term is now considered dated in clinical settings but persists in casual use, sometimes disparagingly, to suggest immaturity: He has the mental age of a teenager.
Intelligence score
- Stanford-BinetCognitive assessment instrument
- scoreNumerical standing in competition
- percentileStatistical ranking threshold
- normsExpected behavioral standards
standardization · equivalence · discrepancy · testing · evaluation · measurement · scale · diagnosis
Notable points of progress
- maturationProcess of becoming complete
- cognitive developmentAcquiring reasoning abilities over time
- intellectual developmentMaturation of mental faculties
- developmental delaySlower-than-typical milestone achievement
regression · progression · neuroplasticity · learning · brain development · stimulation · enrichment · stages
Drawing logical conclusions
- abstract thoughtCognition beyond tangible reality
- comprehensionMental understanding of meaning
- cognitive abilitiesCapacities for thought
- problem-solvingAddressing challenges methodically
spatial reasoning · memory · attention · processing speed · executive function · adaptive behavior · fluid intelligence
Good judgment from experience
- judgmentReasoned decision-making capacity
- sophisticationCultured elegance and complexity
- insightDeep perceptive understanding
- discernmentKeen perception and judgment
responsibility · impulse control · self-regulation · perspective-taking · childishness · immaturity · old soul · grown-up
IQ
Intelligence score
- Stanford-BinetCognitive assessment instrument
- scoreNumerical standing in competition
- percentileStatistical ranking threshold
norms · standardization · equivalence · discrepancy · testing · evaluation · measurement · scale · diagnosis · deviation
milestones
Notable points of progress
- maturationProcess of becoming complete
- cognitive developmentAcquiring reasoning abilities over time
- intellectual developmentMaturation of mental faculties
developmental delay · regression · progression · neuroplasticity · learning · brain development · stimulation · enrichment · stages · Piaget
reasoning
Drawing logical conclusions
- abstract thoughtCognition beyond tangible reality
- comprehensionMental understanding of meaning
- cognitive abilitiesCapacities for thought
problem-solving · spatial reasoning · memory · attention · processing speed · executive function · adaptive behavior · fluid intelligence
wisdom
Good judgment from experience
- judgmentReasoned decision-making capacity
- sophisticationCultured elegance and complexity
- insightDeep perceptive understanding
discernment · responsibility · impulse control · self-regulation · perspective-taking · childishness · immaturity · old soul · grown-up · juvenile behavior
- intelligencesmart, IQ, memory, bright, clever
- child assessmentcognitive tests, behavioral assessment, IQ tests, ADHD testing, psychological evaluation
- lifespanlifetime, life expectancy, lifespan, infancy, lifecycle
- time unitssecond, minute, hour, seconds, day
- Disabilitiesblind, paralysis, vision loss, developmental disability, hearing impairment
- IQ testsIQ, intelligence quotient, IQ score, Stanford-Binet, verbal IQ