Nonverbal Aptitude and Reasoning Tests [Online examples and preparation]

People deal with two types of information every day: non-verbal, that is, numbers or images , and verbal - text.

Employers evaluate information processing skills not out of curiosity. Research shows that nonverbal tests reliably predict job performance

employee at the interview stage, which saves the company’s resources, increasing its profits. These observations are confirmed by international experience.

Is there a nonverbal logic test coming soon?

Get ready

About testing

If text analysis exercises assess indicators of verbal logical thinking, then non-verbal exercises assess visually effective and imaginative thinking. Skills related to the analysis of abstract information also indicate the level of intellectual abilities of the candidate.

Ubiquitous intelligence tasks consist of verbal and nonverbal tasks, for example, the Wechsler, Cattell, and CAT tests.

Verbal, non-verbal intelligence tests, and situational testing are used not only for employment, but also at various personnel competitions. For example, on “Leaders of Russia”. It has been using tests from SHL for several years in a row.

Scythe Cubes

The original test was developed by Oregon State psychology professor S. C. Kos in 1927 under the name "The Block Design Tests." The Kos Cubes test became most widely known after it was included in 1939 by American psychologist David Wexler in a battery of subtests to measure intelligence. Wexler simplified the original version of the test, reducing the number of cubes to nine, colors to two, and pattern cards to ten. To date, this modification of the test has been successfully used in D. Wechsler’s methodology for measuring intelligence. The “Kosa Cubes” test, due to the complex nature of the tasks, turned out to be the most informative in the study of non-verbal intelligence in general and began to be considered as an independent means for measuring it. The functioning of nonverbal intelligence is associated with the characteristics of perception, motor skills, visual-motor coordination, the specifics of spatial representations, constructive and heuristic abilities. “Kos Cubes,” which require the manifestation of a complex of the listed qualities, turned out to be highly sensitive to identifying non-verbal talent. The test is widely used in career guidance and selection to assess abilities for manual practical activities and intellectual prerequisites for technical abilities, in education to identify intellectual learning capabilities, in medicine to diagnose a number of neuropsychological and psychopathological symptoms.

During the testing process, the subject is asked to assemble the figure shown on the card from the available cubes. The time to work on each figure is limited. Observing the behavior of the subject during testing also allows us to obtain additional information about the qualitative uniqueness of his thought processes, the characteristics of his emotional response and character traits, and some psychopathological symptoms. The test has child and adult forms and allows you to work with people aged 5 to 75 years, adapted on a domestic sample.

What do tasks look like?

Most often, nonverbal testing takes place remotely.

HR sends a link to testing by email. The passing score is determined depending on the results of the control group or the results of other candidates. If a person manages to pass, he is invited to an in-person interview. Sometimes testing takes place in person, in the presence of an examiner, on a computer or on paper. The procedure and rules of procedure depend on company policy. It is recommended to check with HR for details in advance. The developer will be recognized from him.

Tasks are of the following types:

• numeric;
• brain teaser;
• tests for mechanical understanding;
• combined, to determine the level of intelligence.

brain teaser

Nonverbal logic test (online):

Go throughGet ready

Logic tests used in hiring are the heirs of psychological IQ tests. Task developers, for example, SHL or TalentQ, adapt classic tasks taking into account the vacancy, company and new selection methods.

Testing to determine logical abilities also allows you to evaluate a candidate’s learning ability, mental acuity and problem-solving skills.

Most often, problems are caused by non-verbal logic - tests with answers to such problems will not help with preparation. To practice, you need advanced guides: they collect typical problems and give tips on how to solve them.

The test consists of 15-20 questions. The answer options are presented in graphical form. A typical question is: continue a graphical or numerical sequence.

To understand mechanics

Nonverbal Mechanical Intelligence Test:

Go throughGet ready

Mechanical understanding testing is used for technical and engineering positions and for those who repair or diagnose machinery.

It allows you to assess the candidate’s logical thinking and assess how much he understands how “the world around him works.”

Workers in production and engineering professions daily encounter mechanisms and the application of physical laws, so they must understand what consequences certain actions or decisions will lead to.

Sometimes similar testing is used for “office positions”, as an addition to intelligence tasks. Thus, the employer evaluates the general level of knowledge, education, learning ability and even motivation of the person.

The test consists of 15-20 questions with illustrations and several answer options.

Numerical

Nonverbal (numerical) ability test:

Go throughGet ready

The basis of distance testing is numerical tests. They are used in selection for vacancies related to calculations (both technical and financial) and analysis of numerical information. It is not enough for a candidate to complete a sequence of mathematical operations. You need to analyze the data, interpret it and draw the right conclusions.

Typically, a typical task is:

• table, graph or combination thereof;
• question;
• answer options.

Comment:

You won’t have to remember any formulas or theorems. Determine what the area of ​​a triangle is, too.

When solving, only basic mathematical operations are used:

• Multiplication, division, addition, subtraction;
• Proportions;
• Percentages, shares.

The main feature and difficulty is the need to quickly analyze a large amount of graphic and numerical information in a short period of time. The solution itself will take no more than 10-15 seconds.

Creative thinking

Imaginative thinking is thinking that uses images and the power of imagination. This is the ability to create and broadcast bright, distinct and detailed images of the future, desired, ideal state. Strong, successful, large-scale entrepreneurs are usually good at imaginative thinking - they see the goal.

Such owners and managers of the enterprise want to have a future, which they must first invent. They are attracted to inventing the future - Vision development, the foresight method, the Delphi technique and the like.

But so that this is not empty fantasy, manilovism, in addition to this, they must have developed the power of intention and will. It also requires a desire to commit, invest existing resources, and a strong ability to attract scarce resources to realize this vision.

They form an image in their minds and begin to move in the chosen direction. Moreover, what is remarkable is that the movement towards a conscious future is supported by unconscious actions and instincts. As they say, “our body is smarter than our head.” If the head sees something ahead, the body itself, without unnecessary prompts and reminders, carries the head to where it is needed or where it is not needed, but really wants to. And, in addition to instincts, the next level of thinking is included in the work - intuition.

When an organization develops its Vision, the psychological mechanism of pulling from the past is instantly activated, because, as Eastern wisdom says, “we do not move towards the future, starting from the past, but the future pulls us out of the past and attracts us to itself.”

The further we move along the scale, the less common these levels of thinking are in reality. And if you cross paths with such an owner or TOP, you need to understand that they are absolutely not interested in delving into drawing flowcharts or engaging in project management on their own. Their thinking is no longer linear, but three-dimensional. Even from strategic transformational sessions using thought process tools, they are likely to run (and run) - bored. They instantly grasp the essence, contextual thinking works great for them. But they haven’t developed it for years, they were born with it.

If, as a result of diagnosing the organization and the solution developed on its basis, such an owner or general director sees the meaning-picture he needs, he is unlikely to roll up his sleeves. Usually they say: “It’s clear - I need people who are able to do all this and bring it to the result I need.” And he will find, motivate, inspire, provide resources and lead this journey to a brighter future.

But it is important to distinguish true visionary leaders from empty-headed projectors with whom you should not mess with.

Developers of nonverbal tests

The times when employers used questions from the field of clinical psychology in their practice are gone. Today, similar tasks are developed by consulting and recruitment agencies. Both psychologists and personnel consultants, HR, engineers and assessment specialists participate in their creation.

For each company that has ordered the creation of testing or the implementation of a comprehensive selection system, tasks are developed in accordance with the requirements of the vacancy or profession.

Most often, employers use tests from:

• SHL;
• TalentQ;
• OnTarget;
• Saville consulting.

Advantages

1. The Nonverbal Ability Test reliably assesses candidates regardless of language skills, cultural or racial differences. It is important for employers to understand whether the candidate will be able to cope with the assigned tasks and benefit the company.
2. The developed assessment matrices allow assessment tests to be carried out by people without psychological education.
3. Instant results.
4. Minimal sensitivity to the candidate's mood swings.

Flaws

1. Cost of creation and implementation.
2. Additional difficulties for applicants

Control

When taking a test online, applicants are tempted to cheat: find nonverbal tests with answers on the Internet, or ask friends for help. The developers have provided for this.

The most effective way to combat dishonest approaches is considered to be a retest: after the candidate successfully passes the remote part, he is invited to an in-person interview.

On it, in the presence of the examiner, he is asked the same questions, but in random order. If it turns out that while taking the test from home, he scored 75%, and in the presence of the examiner 25%, he will be disqualified.

In addition to retesting, to control validity they use:

• Audio and video recording;
• Desktop recording;
• Control of running processes and open browser tabs.

Feasibility

Psychometric tests have long been recognized by the international community as a valid way to predict employee productivity. And while the benefits for employers are obvious, job seekers do not always know how to use the results to their advantage.

For an employee, test results are, first of all, indicators of his professional growth. This is a clear result of his progressive work, which is used as an argument when talking about promotion.

For the applicant, this is an opportunity to stand out from the crowd and personally influence the hiring decision. Whether the employer will like the resume or not is a factor that the candidate cannot influence. And he has the power to influence his preparation and his results. Such a person will outperform his competitors, even if they have more experience or recommendations.

Intuitive Thinking

An even more rarely observed phenomenon in business. Intuition does not live in a head filled with problems. Characteristic features: rapid progression, lack of clearly defined stages, little awareness.

It should not be confused with reflexive-instinctive behavior, which is usually characteristic of the effective and verbal levels of thinking. This is rapid decision-making based on the “fight-freeze-flight” principle, a manifestation of cognitive instinct, interest and other products of the reptilian mind and limbic (emotional) system according to McLean. Which is also a very useful thing. But that's not what we're talking about here.

The third part of the triune brain according to McLean - the neocortex is the sixth (mental, intuitive) sense organ. Its development activates the so-called mental sense, which allows you to sense the subtlest vibrations of the universe, the thoughts of other people - to perceive all unconscious processes, to be aware of, and, consequently, to manage them.

It is in the neocortex that there are limitless possibilities for the process of cognition and their implementation in life. This area of ​​the brain controls not only linguistic and intellectual-logical, but also telepathic and extrasensory abilities. Only through the development of the neocortex can a person realize himself creatively and make ambitious breakthroughs.

At this level of thinking, people do not constantly engage in management, much less operational activities. They have long freed themselves from routine work. They have the opportunity and usually like to engage in reflection and meditative practices. They understand that emptiness is the source of everything and can calmly stop their internal dialogue, being in harmony and receiving intuitive clues about the best trajectory of their life. The more developed the intuition, the less a person worries about the future, he does not make plans. He simply lives in the moment here and now. And it is always very clear to him what to do in the next moment.

Such a person is a sage. And a teacher, if he wants to be one. And if he is somehow still involved in business, then this is not at all the main thing in his life.

This is how, in short, I described for myself a scale of levels of thinking.

The more levels of thinking a person has mastered evolutionarily, the fewer such people are found in the general population. An approximate distribution graph, in my opinion, looks like this:

Rice. 1

What do you most often have to deal with? Sometimes you need educational programs at the verbal level, seminars, consultations. At the logical level, plowing and plowing means setting up regular management, project management and the transition to a process model of activity and its improvement, development of strategies and tactics. The abstract level is necessary for organizational design and construction of organizations, for coordinating the work of employees (assigning coordinates to them in space and time). It is not possible to use the context level often. This is usually a long process of cooperation and consulting support.

Online course “Breakthrough Thinking in Management” (135 hours)

. A certificate of advanced training of the established type from the “Manage the Future” Business School is issued.

I don't specialize in working with imagination. I just understand that visionaries need a team with developed thinking from previous levels, and I help them figure out who is needed and why, what abilities and competencies they should have, and what exactly they should be able to do and want to do.

At the beginning of the article, I mentioned that my work as a development director and business consultant forced me to create this tool. But it’s difficult to work because there is often no one within the organization to implement decisions and projects for business transformation and development.

We need people with a certain level of thinking above the second, especially the third to fifth. And they are sorely lacking. Today, the system of higher education and business education does not purposefully prepare such people. If we want to make a breakthrough in the economy, we need to educate, upgrade thinking, create such people, gather them into a community. This is what we are working on now.

Background photo created by freepik – www.freepik.com

If you fail

Since the purpose of the online stage is to weed out insufficiently qualified candidates, if you fail it, there will be almost no chance of getting a job. If the company uses a full-fledged applicant assessment system, the initial selection is carried out by HR employees. They rate work experience and technical skills nominally. Until the candidate passes this stage, he will not get an interview with the technical director. Therefore, you should not expect that a negative assessment on testing will be compensated by experience or recommendations.

Action Thinking

First, the child learns about the world through his own practical (objective) actions. Then the world is presented and mastered in images that are relatively free from action, and only this experience creates the basis for translating action and image into linguistic means.

By performing new actions, we gradually and more and more master reality, we translate it into our reality (the root of this word is “action”). At the same time, we learn, think even on a pre-verbal level, understand with our bodies, through sensations. This level of thinking stays with us for life. When we do something, we think, and often without words.

When diagnosing, I find out whether people in the company are eager to try something new or whether their behavior is patterned and “frozen.”

How to prepare

Since unique tasks are developed for each company, there is no point in trying to learn the answers. Preparation for nonverbal reasoning tests comes down to two components:

1. Solve practice nonverbal tests online.
2. Studying guidelines and manuals.

The main problem with nonverbal communication tests is the time allocated for each task. As a rule, this is no more than 1 minute.

During this time, you will have to navigate the conditions, understand the issue, choose a strategy and begin to solve it. This time is not enough for an unprepared person. Although the tasks are not repeated, they are created according to the same principles.

By solving training tasks, the candidate not only improves his reaction speed and learns to quickly navigate questions, but also becomes familiar with typical problems.

For most tasks, methodological instructions and free guides for solving them have been created, which provide advice on how to properly organize time and show decent results. They also cover typical questions with example solutions and comments.

The second factor influencing success is preparation time. Since preparing for tests involves developing skills, it takes time to consolidate them. There is no point in preparing the day before testing - this requires at least a week.

What is verbal ability?

Well-developed verbal abilities allow a person to master the language system. It includes various elements and rules for using and connecting these elements. The language system includes:

• phonetic side of speech;
• grammatical structure of speech;
• lexical side of speech;
• syntax.

The phonetic side of speech is the sound composition of the language. Verbal abilities allow you to distinguish sounds by ear and determine the correctness of your pronunciation. In grammar, verbal abilities are manifested by correctly constructed utterances, the words in which are consistent, cases and prepositions are used correctly. In syntax - beautifully and correctly formed sentences that make up a coherent text. The vocabulary of a person with well-developed verbal abilities is usually rich.

All of the above helps in the verbal side of communication, that is, communication that occurs using speech. Highly developed verbal thinking helps to convey your thoughts to your interlocutor, convince you that you are right, and establish dialogue and joint activities. With insufficient development of these abilities, the communication process is difficult (see Dysarthria in children). Only the non-verbal side of communication (facial expressions, pantomime and gestures) does not provide sufficient information. High-quality use of speech to convey information is necessary in the communication process.