It is widely agreed that current ability measures reflect a complex interaction of environment with genetic potential. This leads to a basic measurement problem since persons with the same measured ability may vary widely in potential due to nonequivalent learning opportunities. The purpose of this paper is to present a model which may hold some promise in psychometrically distinguishing ability (current status) from aptitude (potential). Data on spatial reversal performance are analyzed according to the model to illustrate how some of the practical problems may be solved.
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