A CRITIQUE AND REINTERPRETATION OF GORDON'S IQ — COMMENSURABILITY PROPERTY

Abstract

In an earlier issue of this journal (Vol.7, 1987, pp. 30–96) Gordon presented a model based on IQ which, he claimed, explains black‐white differences in rates of juvenile delinquency. The explanations involved the demonstration that prevelance rates of juvenile delinquency satisfys a property which Gordon termed “commensurability” with IQ (IQ‐commensurability). Furthermore, he argued that similar models based on SES or education are unsatisfactory because these variables fail the test of commensurability with respect to delinquency rates. Largely on the basis of these analyses, he concluded that the black‐white difference in IQ is much more credible than the difference in either education or SES as an important cause of race differences in delinquency. The purpose here is to show that the property of IQ‐commensurability is largely irrelevant to any reasonable explanation of the race difference in delinquency rates. Furthermore, IQ‐commensurability can be partially explained by an existing model which is highly plausible, has demonstrated construct validity, and can be viewed as a logical extension of Gordon's own model.

Citation

Bailey, J.M. (1989), "A CRITIQUE AND REINTERPRETATION OF GORDON'S IQ — COMMENSURABILITY PROPERTY", International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, Vol. 9 No. 4, pp. 64-74. https://doi.org/10.1108/eb013076