Have any credible psychologists or institutions assessed Trump's intelligence formally?
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Executive summary
No major professional psychological organization has publicly released a formal, individual intelligence test or clinical diagnostic assessment of Donald Trump; public statements and media reporting instead rely on cognitive-screen results released by the White House and on commentary or informal evaluations by mental‑health professionals (not formal institutional diagnostic panels) [1] [2] [3]. Multiple psychologists, psychiatrists and commentators have published analyses and books arguing about Trump’s personality and fitness — including the 2017 edited volume The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump with 27 contributors — but these are expert opinions based on public behavior, not formal institutional IQ or clinical evaluations disclosed under accepted testing protocols [2] [4].
1. No public, formal IQ or clinical exam from professional psychology bodies
Available reporting shows no credentialed psychological institution (for example the American Psychological Association or major medical centers) has published a formal intelligence (IQ) test result or confidential clinical diagnosis of Trump after an in‑person evaluation; the sources describe expert commentary and group op‑eds rather than institutional, peer‑reviewed diagnostic reports [4] [2] [3]. The White House did release a physical exam and a cognitive screening using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), which the administration summarized as concluding he was “fully fit,” but that is not the same as an in‑depth psychological or neuropsychological battery conducted and published by a professional society [1].
2. The White House cognitive screen is the closest formal item in public record
Reporting notes that on April 13, 2025 the White House posted results of a physical examination at Walter Reed that included a MoCA cognitive screen and characterized Trump as in “excellent health” and “fully fit” [1]. The MoCA is a brief screening tool for cognitive impairment; it does not provide a full neuropsychological profile, an IQ score, or a formal psychiatric diagnosis, and the released summary came from the White House physician rather than an independent professional body [1].
3. Many clinicians have offered public diagnoses or warnings — but professional ethics limit armchair diagnosis
Since 2016 dozens of psychiatrists and mental‑health experts have publicly assessed Trump’s temperament and risks. The 2017 book The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump collected views from 27 psychiatrists and mental‑health professionals warning about dangerousness and personality traits; other clinicians such as Bandy X. Lee have continued to press concerns about cognitive decline and fitness [2] [3]. These contributions are expert commentary based on public behavior and not formal clinical evaluations, and some within psychiatry debate the ethics and validity of diagnosing public figures without examination [3] [2].
4. Academic and popular psychologists study traits and behaviors, not confidential testing
A steady stream of academic articles, blog essays and syntheses analyze Trump’s personality dimensions — for example studies compiling 20 papers on psychological correlates of support or trait‑based profiles suggesting low agreeableness or emotional stability — but these are research and interpretive work using public records and survey data rather than statements that he has been given and cleared by a credentialed IQ or clinical testing battery [5] [6] [7]. Websites and outlets label these efforts as “psychological analyses” that explicitly stop short of clinical diagnosis without direct assessment [8] [7].
5. Two competing narratives in reporting: clinical alarm vs. caution about armchair diagnosis
One clear narrative — represented by clinicians and books such as The Dangerous Case — asserts that Trump’s behavior raises urgent concerns about mental fitness and potential dangerousness [2]. The other narrative emphasizes professional limits: many psychologists and ethics guidelines caution against public diagnosis without examination and say population‑level trait studies or brief cognitive screens are insufficient to conclude serious impairment [3] [4]. Both narratives appear across the available sources [2] [3] [4].
6. What is and is not present in the record — and what that implies
Available sources document the White House’s MoCA disclosure and multiple expert commentaries and group publications assessing personality and risk [1] [2] [3]. Available sources do not mention any independent scientific institution publishing a full neuropsychological battery, standardized IQ test, or peer‑reviewed clinical diagnostic report of Trump following in‑person assessment (not found in current reporting) [1] [2].
7. Bottom line for readers seeking certainty
If you want an independently administered, full psychological or IQ evaluation published by a professional body, the public record in these sources does not show one. If you want expert interpretation of behavior, many clinicians and researchers have provided sustained, often sharply differing, analysis in books, articles and opinion pieces — and those competing viewpoints are the main public basis for claims about Trump’s cognitive and psychological profile [2] [5] [4].