Intelligence

DQ What is intelligence?

Intelligence Capacity to learn from experience, think rationally, and to deal effectively with the environment. It is not achievement, which is the knowledge and skills gained from experience.

Psychologists have proposed several approaches to defining intelligence. Charles Spearman Louis Thurstone Howard Gardner Robert Sternbergt Daniel Goleman

Charles Spearman Suggested that intelligence consists of a g factor (general intelligence) and an s factor ( specific intelligence).

Louis Thurstone believed that 7 primary mental abilities together make up intelligence.

According to Howard Gardner, people have several kinds of intelligence. Linguistic intelligence ("word smart") Logical-mathematical intelligence ("number/reasoning smart") Spatial intelligence ("picture smart") Bodily-Kinesthetic intelligence ("body smart") Musical intelligence ("music smart") Interpersonal intelligence ("people smart") Intrapersonal intelligence ("self smart") Naturalist intelligence ("nature smart")

Robert Sternberg’s triarchic theory, intelligence consists of analytical, creative, and practical abilities, all of which work together.

Emotional Intelligence – (written by Goleman) Daniel Goleman suggests that another kind of intelligence, called emotional intelligence is as important as mental abilities. Emotional Intelligence – (written by Goleman) Consists of 5 factors

Emotional Intelligence Self-awarenesss Mood management Self-motivation Impulse control – delay pleasure People skills - ability to empathize, understand, communicate and cooperate with others

Some types of intelligence may be linked to each other.

DQ List 4 of the intelligences that Gardner came up with.

Linguistic intelligence ("word smart") Logical-mathematical intelligence ("number/reasoning smart") Spatial intelligence ("picture smart") Bodily-Kinesthetic intelligence ("body smart") Musical intelligence ("music smart") Interpersonal intelligence ("people smart") Intrapersonal intelligence ("self smart") Naturalist intelligence ("nature smart")

Measurement of Intelligence Intelligence tests are intended to measure intelligence and to predict academic and job success. The Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale was devised by Alfred Binet in the early 1900s and revised by Louis Terman of Stanford. IQ (Intelligence quotient) = MA (mental age)/chronological age (CA) times 100

History Alfred Binet designed the first widely used intelligence test for the purpose of identifying children who could benefit from remedial work in France.

The revised Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale is currently the most widely used intelligence test. 3 scores – verbal, nonverbal, and combined

Intelligence tests must meet the criteria of reliability and validity Reliability means the test gives highly similar scores for the same person every time it is used. Validity means the test measures what it is supposed to measure.

Factors such as economic background and motivation can influence test performance.

The methods used in some intelligence tests can give an unfair advantage to certain cultural groups.

Culture & IQ IQ tests have been criticized for being biased in favor of white, middle-class people. However, efforts to construct culture-free and culture-fair tests have been disappointing. How could culture affect test scores? How could someone’s socioeconomic background affect test scores?

Culture affects nearly everything to do with taking a test, from attitudes to problem-solving strategies. Negative stereotypes about a person’s ethnicity, gender, or age may cause the person to suffer stereotype threat, a burden of doubt about his or her own abilities, which can lead to anxiety or "disidentification" with the test.

·Many social scientists consider IQ tests useful for predicting school performance and diagnosing learning difficulties, as long as test scores are combined with other information and used "intelligently." But ... critics would like to dispense with the tests because they are so often misused or misinterpreted.

Expected Distribution of IQ scores

About half of the people in the US attain scores in the broad range between 90-110 Nearly 95% between 70-130 The other 5 % score below 70 or above 130.

Mental Retardation Score below 70 Several levels Mild – 80% 50-70, can learn to read, write, hold down a job Moderate -35-49, can learn to speak, dress themselves, take care of hygiene

Severe – 20-34, require constant supervision, may have some understanding of speech and be able to respond Profound – below 20 barely communicate, dependent throughout lives

Causes Accidents Pregnant women that drink or do drugs or are malnourished Genetic disorders

Quiz (10 points apiece) What are 3 causes of mental retardation? Why did Alred Binet originally create the test in 1905 France? What does the term reliability refer to? Describe moderate retardation. Mental retardation is categorized ____ and below on the IQ test. (50 points) What is your opinion on standardized testing? Can a standardized test give accurate, reliable results? Why or Why not?

Giftedness IQ over 130 Outstanding talent or to show the potential for performing at remarkably high levels of accomplishment

Daily Question If you scored a 130 on an IQ test, you would be labeled as ______________?

Case Studies Read page 217 and answer the Think About It Question

Creativity Giftedness is often linked with creativity Ability to invent new solutions to problems or to create original ideas

Prodigy – a child who is exceptionally talented at something Savant – person with mental retardation or autism who has an extraordinary skill Prodigy – a child who is exceptionally talented at something Mozart at age of 5 – music

What Influences Intelligence?

Kinship Studies & Adoptee Studies Show that heredity plays a strong role in determining intelligence. Most studies suggest that the heritability of intelligence is between 40 and 60 percent. Most studies of adopted children show that their IQ is more similar to their biological parents.

How to raise smart kids Parents – emotionally and verbally responsive to children’s needs Involved in children’s activities Provide varied daily experiences Home environment – well organized and safe Encourage children to be independent and to make own decisions

Other studies show that environmental factors such as parenting style and schooling also affect intelligence.

What can help older people maintain a high level of intellectual functioning? Level of income Level of education A history of stimulating jobs Intact family life Attendance at cultural events, travel, and reading Marriage to a spouse with a high level of intellectual functioning A flexible personality

Terms and Concepts 1-10 on page 223 Critical Thinking 1-7

Dissecting Intelligence: The Cognitive Approach ·In contrast to the psychometric approach, cognitive approaches to intelligence emphasize several kinds of intelligence and the strategies people use to solve problems, not merely whether they get the right answers.

Sternberg’s triarchic theory of intelligence · Sternberg’s triarchic theory of intelligence proposes three aspects of intelligence: componential (including metacognition), experiential, and contextual. Contextual intelligence allows you to acquire tacit knowledge, practical strategies that are important for success in your personal life, at school, and on the job. The theory also emphasizes the importance of tacit knowledge, which is important in an individual’s personal and occupational success.

Gardner: Multiple Intelligences Intelligence in one domain does not necessarily imply intelligence in another. Howard Gardner proposes that there are actually several "intelligences" besides those usually considered, including musical and kinesthetic intelligence, and the capacity to understand the natural world, yourself, or others. The latter two overlap with what some psychologists call emotional intelligence, which is associated with personal, academic, and occupational success.

Animal Minds Some researchers, especially those in the field of cognitive ethology, argue that nonhuman animals have greater cognitive abilities than is usually thought. Some animals can use objects as rudimentary tools. Chimpanzees have learned to use numerals to label quantities of items and symbols to refer to objects. The great apes have shown some evidence of having a theory of mind, which allows them to do things like recognize themselves in a mirror, empathize with others, and use deception. But not all researchers are convinced that these abilities exist in animals.

Anthropomorphism · Several researchers have used visual symbol systems or American Sign Language (ASL), to teach primates language skills, and some animals (even some nonprimates) seem able to use simple grammatical ordering rules to convey or comprehend meaning. However, scientists are still divided as to how to interpret these findings, and the research on animal cognition, with some worrying about anthropomorphism and others worrying about anthropodenial.

Must Know Terms: crystallized intelligence Cognitive skills and specific knowledge of information acquired over a lifetime; it is heavily dependent on education and tends to remain stable over the lifetime. emotional intelligence The ability to identify your own and other people's emotions accurately, express your emotions clearly, and regulate emotions in yourself and others.

Terms continued... fluid intelligence The capacity for deductive reasoning and the ability to use new information to solve problems; it is relatively independent of education and tends to decline in old age. g factor A general intellectual ability assumed by many theorists to underlie specific mental abilities and talents.

Terms continued... heritability A statistical estimate of the proportion of the total variance in some trait that is attributable to genetic differences among individuals within a group. IQ is 40-60% heritable. intelligence An inferred characteristic of an individual, usually defined as the ability to profit from experience, acquire knowledge, think abstractly, act purposefully, or adapt to changes in the environment

Terms continued... intelligence quotient (IQ) A measure of intelligence originally computed by dividing a person's mental age by his or her chronological age and multiplying the result by 100; it is now derived from norms provided for standardized intelligence tests. mental age (MA) A measure of mental development expressed in terms of the average mental ability at a given age.

Terms continued... triarchic theory of intelligence A theory of intelligence that emphasizes information- processing strategies, the ability to creatively transfer skills to new situations, and the practical application of intelligence. Anderson’s theory of intelligence The theory that differences in intelligence result from differences in the “basic processing mechanism” that implements thinking, which in turn yields knowledge. Individuals vary in the speed at which basic processing occurs.

Terms continued... Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale Stanford revision of the Binet test which measures the kinds of changes in intelligence ordinarily associated with growing older. Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale A verbal scale and a performance scale that yield separate scores as well as a full-scale IQ.

Terms continued... reliability Yielding reproducible and consistent results. validity Measuring what is intended to be measured.

Terms continued...Validity construct validity The ability of a test or assessment instrument to confirm predictions of the theory underlying some theoretical concept or construct. Confirming results validate both the concept and the assessment instrument simultaneously. criterion validity The ability of a test or assessment instrument to predict the behavior it is designed to predict (syn. empirical validity).

Terms continued...Validity Face Validity --Does the test appear to be appropriate ?Not a statistical concept, entirely subjective. Content Validity - Does the test cover all of the domains to be measured ? Not a statistical concept, but an evaluation by an expert which is, hopefully, arrived at after careful study of the test objectives and wording, etc.