An individual is typically considered mentally retarded if their IQ falls below which score?

An individual is typically considered mentally retarded if their IQ falls below which score?

• A. 70
• B. 100
• C. 85
• D. 75

Answer: (A)

The main idea here is that the threshold for identifying significant cognitive limitations is about two standard deviations below the average IQ. With a mean of 100 and a standard deviation of 15, two SDs below is 70. So an IQ of 70 or below is typically considered indicative of intellectual disability, especially when there are also difficulties with adaptive functioning in daily life. The other scores are higher and do not meet that cutoff on their own. (Note: modern terminology uses intellectual disability rather than the older term.)

The main idea here is that the threshold for identifying significant cognitive limitations is about two standard deviations below the average IQ. With a mean of 100 and a standard deviation of 15, two SDs below is 70. So an IQ of 70 or below is typically considered indicative of intellectual disability, especially when there are also difficulties with adaptive functioning in daily life. The other scores are higher and do not meet that cutoff on their own. (Note: modern terminology uses intellectual disability rather than the older term.)