Woodley and his co-author, Elijah Armstrong, ranked 14 IQ tests according to the extent to which they could be solved by applying and re-applying rules. Some tests, like Raven’s Progressive Matrices, ask test-takers to detect complex patterns—but figuring out and reapplying a few simple rules can result in a substantial boost in scores. Other tests, like vocabulary tests, depend on recalled knowledge; they cannot be solved by using rules. (Determining the rule-dependence of tests is the most subjective part of this paper.) When Armstrong and Woodley compared data on the Flynn effect for each of the 14 different IQ tests, their results were striking: The more rule-dependent a test, the more pronounced the Flynn effect—suggesting that the Flynn effect is not due to increases in general intelligence, but to a better ability to short-circuit the test by detecting and applying certain rules

via Rising IQ Scores Don’t Mean Greater Intelligence | New Republic.