1. Intelligence A.P. Psych Information adapted from: http://www.lbusd.k12.ca.us/millikan/Teacher_folder/HawkinsS/AdPlPsychology2.htm

2. Origins of Intelligence Testing  Intelligence Test  a method of assessing an individual’s mental aptitudes and comparing them to those of others, using numerical scores

3. Origins of Intelligence Testing  Mental Age  a measure of intelligence test performance devised by Binet  chronological age that most typically corresponds to a given level of performance  child who does as well as the average 8-year- old is said to have a mental age of 8

4. Origins of Intelligence Testing  Stanford-Binet  the widely used American revision of Binet’s original intelligence test  revised by Terman at Stanford University  Terman added items to measure adult intelligence  He also revised a method of scoring by developing the IQ or intelligence quotient  From this method of scoring came the IQ Test

5. Origins of Intelligence Testing  Intelligence Quotient (IQ)  defined originally the ratio of mental age (ma) to chronological age (ca) multiplied by 100  IQ = ma/ca x 100)  on contemporary tests, the average performance for a given age is assigned a score of 100

6. What is Intelligence?  Intelligence  ability to learn from experience, solve problems, and use knowledge to adapt to new situations

7. Assessing Intelligence  Aptitude Test  a test designed to predict a person’s future performance  aptitude is the capacity to learn  Achievement Test  a test designed to assess what a person has learned  Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS)  most widely used intelligence test  subtests  verbal  performance (nonverbal)

8. Assessing Intelligence  Standardization  defining meaningful scores by comparison with the performance of a pretested “standardization group”  Normal Curve  the symmetrical bell-shaped curve that describes the distribution of many physical and psychological attributes  most scores fall near the average, and fewer and fewer scores lie near the extremes

9. Getting Smarter?

10. The Normal Curve

11. Assessing Intelligence  Reliability  the extent to which a test yields consistent results  assessed by consistency of scores on:  two halves of the test  alternate forms of the test  retesting  Validity  the extent to which a test measures or predicts what it is supposed to

12. Reliability v. Validity

13. Reliability and Validity of IQ Tests Reliability:  Problem before age 7.  For teenagers and adults, reliability is high. Validity:  Can only be assessed for specific purposes.  Reasonably good for predicting success in school and many occupations.

14. Assessing Intelligence  Content Validity  the extent to which a test samples the behavior that is of interest  driving test that samples driving tasks  Criterion  behavior (such as college grades) that a test (such as the SAT) is designed to predict  the measure used in defining whether the test has predictive validity

15. Assessing Intelligence Evidence about a test’s validity:  Content validity  Criterion validity  Predictive validity  Construct validity  Concurrent validity

16. Genetic Influences

17.  Heritability  the proportion of variation among individuals that we can attribute to genes  variability depends on range of populations and environments studied

18. Genetic Influences

19. Understanding Intelligence Psychometric Approach – emphasizes the products of intelligence (IQ scores)  Spearman’s g: scores on almost all tests of cognitive abilities were positively correlated g = cognitive ability, s = special intelligences  Thurstone: factor analysis – found seven independent primary mental abilities  Cattell: two types of g Fluid intelligence – reasoning & problem solving Crystallized intelligence – specific knowledge gained as a result of fluid intelligence

20. Understanding Intelligence Information-Processing Approach – analyzes the process of intelligent behavior rather than the product  Applies the basic mental processes of perception, learning, memory, and thought to the concept of intelligence

21. Understanding Intelligence Triarchic Theory – Sternberg  3 kinds of intelligences: 1.Analytic – problem solving, measured by IQ tests 2.Creative – composing music, art 3.Practical – survival skills Broadens the concept of intelligence and emphasizes what it means in everyday life

22. Understanding Intelligence Multiple Intelligences – Gardner 1.Linguistic 2.Logical-mathematical 3.Spatial 4.Musical 5.Body-kinesthetic 6.Intrapersonal 7.Interpersonal 8.Naturalistic

23. Diversity in Cognitive Abilities Creativity – the ability to produce new, high- quality ideas or products  Divergent thinking – the ability to think along many paths to generate many solutions to a problem  3 kinds of cognitive and personality characteristics necessary for creativity: 1.Expertise 2.Set of creative skills 3.Motivation No strong correlation b/w IQ and creativity scores Creativity requires divergent thinking and IQ tests assess convergent thinking (the ability to apply logic to narrow down the # of possible solutions)

24. Unusual Cognitive Abilities Giftedness –  high IQs  don’t necessarily share same cognitive abilities  Have more of the basic cognitive abilities seen in all children Mental Retardation  IQ less than 70 and who fail to display skill at daily living and communication Down syndrome – extra chromosome Fragile X syndrome –defect on chromosome 23 Environmental conditions – head injury, exposure to alcohol or toxins Familial retardation  Deficient in metacognition

25. The Dynamics of Intelligence

26. Unusual Cognitive Abilities (con’t) Learning Disabilities  Dyslexia – letters appear disjointed or jumbled  Dysphasia – difficulty understanding spoken words or recalling words  Dysgraphia – problems with writing  Dyscalculia – difficulty with arithmetic