Measuring Intelligence

What is Intelligence? 1. rational thought and reasoning 2. the ability to act purposefully in an environment 3. the ability to deal with situations, in an effective manner, within an environment.

4. cognitive ability– - memory - perception - concept formation - problem solving - mental imagery - action - association - language

5. the ability to learn from experience 6. the ability to live and cope with the demands of every day life

All brains are wired differently - this makes us unique, individual We are affected by experience - our response to an experience is varied and unique

So, What is Intelligence? The global capacity of a person to act purposefully, to think rationally, and to deal effectively with his/her environment.

Measuring Intelligence IQ Tests People develop and mature at different rates - therefore, difficult to test children/youth

IQ tests measure how well you know how to write a test - familiarization leads to higher scores IQ can be raised by repeatedly taking IQ tests and familiarizing yourself with the type of questions

I.Q. is culturally dependent - if someone has never been exposed to mathematical teaching, how do you accurately measure IQ? language has specific cultural meanings - if a word is not understood, how does an individual answer the question?

In recent studies, IQ accounts for only 20% of success in life So, what accounts for success in life?

Emotional Intelligence Accounts for 80 of life success Knowing your feelings and using them to make life decisions you can live with Being able to manage your emotional life without being hijacked by it – not being paralyzed by depression or worry, or swept away by anger

Persisting in the face of setbacks and channeling your impulses in order to pursue your goals Empathy – reading other people’s emotions without their having to tell you what they are feeling Handling feelings in relationships with skill and harmony – being able to articulate the unspoken pulse of a group

The Marshmallow Test In the 1960’s, at Stanford University, an experiment was performed on 4 year old nursery school children. Researchers game each child a marshmallow and told them that if the child could wait fifteen minutes without eating it, they could get two marshmallows. The original test was designed to test self control.

The Experiment 600 kids were tested the children were followed from the 1960’s to the late 1980’s only 30% could hold out for the second marshmallow

Results - The brain skill necessary to wait for the marshmallow is known as an ‘executive function’ (also, self regulation) - executive functions include: - inhibiting impulses - sustaining attention - planning - prioritizing - strategizing to stick to a plan

The marshmallow test is an indicator of who will be successful in life and who will not.

The good news for all of you who ate your marshmallow…. - we can all learn to get more marshmallows - simple childhood games, such as ‘Simon Says’ teaches children to improve attention, refine motor control and control impulses