The Fagan test of infant intelligence purports to index infant intelligence by assessing infant’s information processing capacities. The degree to which continuity exists between infants cognitive capacities and later intelligence has interested researchers since 1930.

Until the early 1980’s Intelligence in infancy was thought to be unrelated to intellectual functioning in childhood and adulthood. This sentiments was based on the lack of association between researcher’s indices of infant intelligence, which assessed sensory-motor functioning, and adult measures of intelligence. The FTII was developed in early 1980s.