Intelligence

What makes us smart?Or not so smart?

Intelligence

• Intelligence – a mental ability to learn from experience, solve problems, and use knowledge to adapt to new situations.

• Culturally constructed - defined according to the attributes that enable success in a culture

– Example:

According to this definition, are both Einstein and Ruth intelligent?

Intelligence Tests

• Intelligence Test – a method of assessing mental aptitudes and comparing them with others– Reification –

converting something abstract into a material thing

• Example:

Theories of Intelligence• 5Theories:

1. g-intelligence (Spearman) 2. Thurstone’s primary mental abilities3. Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligence4. Sternberg’s Three Intelligences5. Goldman’s Emotional Intelligence

G factor (Spearman)• General Intelligence (G) - a general

intelligence that underlies successful performance on a wide variety of tasks.– measured with a single numerical score

• Example –

Factor analysis – statistical procedure used to identify clusters of closely related test items.

Used to assess whether intelligence is a single trait or a collection of several distinct abilities (G intelligence uses factor analysis)

L.L. Thurstone

• Thurstone challenged Spearman - identified 7 clusters of mental ability• Word fluency, verbal

comprehension, spatial ability, perceptual speed, numerical ability inductive reasoning and memory

• Later found

Howard Gardner and Multiple Intelligences

• Gardner believed that there exists at least 7 different types of intelligences.

1. Linguistic2. Logical-mathematical3. Spatial4. Musical5. Body-kinesthetic6. Intrapersonal7. Interpersonal8. Naturalist

• Example

Triarchic Theory (Sternberg)• Most commonly accepted

theory today.• Three types of intelligence

1.Analytical – Example:

2. Creative– Example:

3. Practical– Example:

EQ – Emotional Quotient (Goldman)

• Emotional Intelligence – ability to perceive, understand, manage and use emotions

• Maybe EQ is a better predictor for future success than IQ.

EQ – Emotional Quotient

• Social Intelligence – the ability to comprehend social situations and managing yourself successfully

• Emotional Intelligence – ability to perceive, understand, manage and use emotions– 4 components

– Criticism -

Brain Size and IntelligenceIs there a link?

• Small +.15 correlation between head size and intelligence scores (relative to body size).

• MRI found correlation with brain size and IQ score -

• Einstein’s Brian

Brain Size and Complexity

• Higher performing brains:

• Intelligent children –

BBrain Function

• Perceptual Speed

• Neurological speed

Assessing Intelligence• Frances Galton – intellectual

superiority was inherited– Meaured muscular power, sensory

acuity, and body proportions

• Alfred Binet and Theodore Simon – mental age - what a person of

a particular age should know.• Predict future performance

through determination of mental age

Stanford-Binet (Terman)

• Used Binet’s research to construct the modern day IQ test called the Stanford-Binet Test.

• IQ=Mental age/Chronological age X 100.

• A 8 year old has a mental age of 10, what is her IQ?

• A 12 year old has the mental age of 9, what is his IQ?

• A boy has the mental age of 10 and an IQ of 200, how old is he?

Problems with the IQ Formula

• It does not really work well on adults, why?

then her IQ would be _______?Ok, ok…an average 35 year old? Then her IQ would be_________?

If a 60 year old woman

does as well as an average 29 year old

Still makes no sense!!!!!

The Normal Curve and Stanford-Binet IQ Scores

IQs less than 70 = mental retardation. More than 130 = gifted

Wechsler Tests

• More common • Does not use the

formula but uses the same scoring system.

• WAIS• WISC• WPPSI

Aptitude v. Achievement TestsAptitude• A test designed to

predict a person’s future performance.

• Ability for a person to learn a new skill.

• Example:

Achievement• A test designed to

assess what a person has learned (knowledge and skills)

• Example

Modern Tests of Mental Abilities• Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale

(WAIS) consists of 11 verbal and performance subtests– Assesses– verbal comprehension, perceptual

organization, working memory, and processing speed scores, as well as an overall intelligence score

– Uses factor analysis• WISC –

• Performance tests - Object assembly, picture arrangement, and block design, digit span, vocabulary

Wechler Adult Intelligence Scale

Constructing Intelligence Tests

• Standardized - a person's test performance can be compared with that of a representative pretested group.– Example:

• Reliable: Test-Retest, Split-halves Methods.

• Validity: Content, Predictive or Construct.

Normal Bell Curve• Standardized tests form a normal distribution or bell

curve• Few people deviate extremely from the ave.

– more than 2 standard deviations from the mean– Examples:

The Flynn Effect• Performance on IQ scores has steadily

increased over generations– Environmental factors NOT genetics

• Reduction in malnutrition• Access to schooling• Technological advances

– To avoid:

Reliability• Reliability - The extent

which a test yields consistent results over time.– Spilt halves

– test–retest method –

ValidityValidity - the extent to which a test measures what

it is supposed to measure.• Content Validity: does the test sample the

behavior of interest• Examples:

• Predictive Validity: does the test predict future behavior.

• Examples:

Intelligence Change Over Time• Infant intelligence

• By age 4 –

• By age 7 –

• predictive validity of general aptitude tests

• Depends on the type of intelligence, crystallized or fluid.

Fluid intelligence

Crystallized intelligence

Extremes of Intelligence

• Akrit Jaswal

The Low Extreme

• Intellectual disability – both a low test score and difficulty adapting to independent living–Mental retardation–Down syndrome–Mainstreamed

Classifications of Intellectual Disability

Level Approximate

Intelligence Scores

Adaptation to Demands of Life

Mild 50-70 May learn academic skills up to sixth-grade level. Adults may with assistance, achieve self-supporting social and vocational skills

Moderate 35-50 May progress to second-grade level academically. Adults may contribute to their own support by laboring in sheltered workshops

Severe 20-35 May learn to talk and to perform simple tasks under close supervision but are generally unable to profit from vocational training

Classifications of Intellectual Disability

Level Approximate

Intelligence Scores

Adaptation to Demands of Life

Mild 50-70 May learn academic skills up to sixth-grade level. Adults may with assistance, achieve self-supporting social and vocational skills

Moderate 35-50 May progress to second-grade level academically. Adults may contribute to their own support by laboring in sheltered workshops

Severe 20-35 May learn to talk and to perform simple tasks under close supervision but are generally unable to profit from vocational training

Classifications of Intellectual Disability

Level Approximate

Intelligence Scores

Adaptation to Demands of Life

Mild 50-70 May learn academic skills up to sixth-grade level. Adults may with assistance, achieve self-supporting social and vocational skills

Moderate 35-50 May progress to second-grade level academically. Adults may contribute to their own support by laboring in sheltered workshops

Severe 20-35 May learn to talk and to perform simple tasks under close supervision but are generally unable to profit from vocational training

Classifications of Intellectual Disability

Level Approximate

Intelligence Scores

Adaptation to Demands of Life

Mild 50-70 May learn academic skills up to sixth-grade level. Adults may with assistance, achieve self-supporting social and vocational skills

Moderate 35-50 May progress to second-grade level academically. Adults may contribute to their own support by laboring in sheltered workshops

Severe 20-35 May learn to talk and to perform simple tasks under close supervision but are generally unable to profit from vocational training

Classifications of Intellectual Disability

Level Approximate

Intelligence Scores

Adaptation to Demands of Life

Mild 50-70 May learn academic skills up to sixth-grade level. Adults may with assistance, achieve self-supporting social and vocational skills

Moderate 35-50 May progress to second-grade level academically. Adults may contribute to their own support by laboring in sheltered workshops

Severe 20-35 May learn to talk and to perform simple tasks under close supervision but are generally unable to profit from vocational training

Profound Below 25 Require constant aid and supervision

The High Extreme• Terman’s study of gifted

• Self-fulfilling prophecy

• Appropriate developmental placement– Tracking students

Twin and Adoption Studies• Genes and Environmental

influences• Identical twin studies

– Polygenetic Trait-

• Adoptive children studies

Heritability• Heritability – variation in

intelligence scores attributed to genetic factors (50%)– Example:

Heritability

Environmental Influences• Early environmental

influences– Intellectual developmental delays– Tutored human enrichment

– Mozart effect – now discounted finding that intelligence is boosted by listening to classical music

• Schooling and intelligence– Project Head Start

• Ian and Nolan are identical twins who were adopted into different families shortly after birth. Use what you know about the stability of intelligence over time and the relative contributions of genetic and environmental factors to predict how similar Ian and Nolan's IQ scores will be at age 5 and age at 25.

Gender Differences in Intelligence Test Scores

• Girls • Boys

Ethnic Differences in Intelligence Test Scores

• Similarities– Infant intelligence

• Differences– Ave. intelligence

scores

– Math abilities

– Asians

The Question of Bias• Two meanings of bias

– Popular sense – • Yes -

– Scientific sense – • No -

• Test-taker’s expectations– Stereotype threat - Perform worse if feel

apprehensive because of stereotypes• Example: