Thursday, November 12, 2026

Beyond IQ: Unlocking the Drivers of Real-Word Learning: Dr. Kevin McGrew on the Testing Psychologist podcast

I’m pleased to announce that I was recently interviewed as part of the Testing Psychologist podcast series by Dr. Jeremy Sharpe.  More info about the massive resources available at the Testing Psychologist web page can be found here.  If you want to listen to the interview click this link.  Enjoy.  If you make it to the end, you might be surprised about some of my positions regarding cognitive assessment.  



As described at Dr. Sharpe’s page.

Today, I have the honor of speaking with Dr. Kevin McGrew, lead author of the Woodcock-Johnson battery and a leading expert on intelligence theory, to re-examine how we understand and evaluate human intelligence. We discuss his career journey from practicing school psychologist to educational researcher. Dr. McGrew breaks down the mathematical limitations of relying solely on IQ scores to predict academic performance. We unpack his CAMML model (Cognitive Affective Motivation Model of Learning) to evaluate how motivation, self-beliefs, and self-regulated learning drive real-world achievement. Finally, we discuss why general intelligence (g) may be better understood as an emergent property rather than a biological entity in the brain, alongside emerging digital innovations and psychometric network models shaping the future of assessment.

Main Topics Discussed

  • 00:52: Early experiences in school psychology and developing a foundational interest in individual differences
  • 04:08: Alan Kaufman’s intelligent testing framework and early clinical adoption of the Woodcock-Johnson
  • 17:50: The historical 1986 meeting bringing together John Horn and John Carroll to form CHC theory
  • 20:49: The Forrest Gump presentation and the mathematical reality of standard errors of estimate
  • 30:14: Introducing the CAMML model for evaluating non-cognitive drivers of learning
  • 42:25: Addressing structural gaps in graduate training regarding motivation and individual differences
  • 53:01: Re-evaluating general intelligence (g) as an emergent property akin to engine horsepower
  • 01:06:33: Future frontiers in assessment including psychometric network models, meta-SEMs, and millisecond digital timing

Resources Mentioned

ABOUT DR. KEVIN MCGREW

Dr. Kevin McGrew has been a practicing school psychologist, educational psychologist researcher interested in individual differences in learning, professor of applied psychology, coauthor of the WJ III, WJ V, and WJ V (lead author), intelligence and applied psychometric expert witness/consultant in “Atkins” intellectual disability death penalty cases, and is the director of the Institute for Applied Psychometrics (IAP).

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