Psychology: ch.7 pg 6- (Intelligence: theories of intelligence)

Who Was L.L. Thurstone?

Not everyone agreed with Spearman's single-factor theory of intelligence. One of his most prominent critics was L.L. Thurstone. Thurstone believed that humans have multiple, distinct forms of intelligence. Central to Thurstone's position was the idea that the different forms of intelligence were independent.

Who was Raymond Cattell and what are Cattell's Sub-factors of Intelligence?

Raymond Cattell used factor analysis to study intelligence. Cattell took a slightly different approach. He did not deny the presence of an overarching g factor, but argued that there was a secondary factor level. Thus, he felt that the hundreds of abilities that work together to produce g could be organized into two sub-factors.

What eight distinct types of Intelligence did Howard Gardner propose?

Spatial, Logical-Mathematical, Linguistic, Naturalistic, Interpersonal, Intrapersonal, and Bodily-Kinesthetic.

What did Charles Spearnmans research suggest?

Spearman's research suggested that variance in specific intellectual tasks can be explained by a general factor (g) that explains variance across the various tasks and s which explains variance on a specific task.

What is Intelligence

a mental capacity which enhances performance, learning, problem-solving, and adaptation, across settings. Intelligence is a dimensional theoretical construct on which individuals differ one another in relative terms.

Cattell-Horn-Carroll (CHC) Theory of Intelligence?

a model that organizes intelligence in three hierarchical levels with specific intelligences at Level 1, sub-factors that group specific forms of intelligence at level 2, and a general factor (g) at the third and highest level of the hierarchy. Today, CHC model of intelligence is among the most widely accepted and applied.

Specific Intelligence

referred to as "s", is mental abilities specific to a given intellectual task. While there is only one g, there are many different types of s. Thus, differences in individuals performance on any specific intellectual task would be expected to occur as a result of differences in each person's g factor (i.e., general intelligence) and s (i.e., their specific intelligence) for that task.

Factor Analysis

refers to a statistical method by which many observations are reduced to a small number of factors by grouping together observations that have very high correlations.

What is Crystallized Intelligence (Gc)?

refers to acquired knowledge and mental abilities that have been cultivated through experience with the world (Cattell, 1971). Such skills involve general information, use of vocabulary, knowledge of history, and so on.

What is Fluid Intelligence (Gf)?

refers to inductive and deductive reasoning abilities. You used your fluid reasoning abilities to solve that problem. Cattell once framed Gf as the intelligence one uses when facing a problem one has never faced before

What are the seven independent intelligence factors that Thurstone believed humans have?

word fluency, verbal comprehension, spatial ability, perceptual speed, numerical ability, inductive reasoning, and memory

How Did Spearman Develop His Theory?

He based his position on the findings of his empirical research. One of his initial studies focused on the success of children in classes that seemed to have little to do with one another (e.g., math, music, French). He found that students' performances in these classes tended to be correlated, suggesting that a child who performed strongly in one area was more likely to perform strongly in the other areas (Spearman, 1904). This supported the idea that a g factor was influencing performance.

What is Mental Capacity

Intelligence is a mental capacity. While we know that intelligence relates to biological functioning, the specifics regarding how biology and intelligence are connected are not fully understood. Thus, we study intelligence as a construct.

What is Contextual Intelligence?

This form of intelligence is also called practical intelligence, as it relates to "street smarts" or "real world" intelligence. This form of intelligence involves effectively applying what one knows to achieve in the real world. People high in this form of intelligence do well with problems that do not have a single solution (e.g., selecting a career)

What Is Robert Sternberg's Triarchic Theory of Intelligence?

Triarchic Theory of Intelligence focuses on three metacomponents of intelligence: Analytical Intelligence, Creative Intelligence, and Contextual Intelligence

Why Is Intelligence a Construct?

We are always estimating intelligence and we are never directly measuring it. Thus, a person's score on an intelligence test is an estimation of their actual ability.

What is Enhancing Function

We infer intelligence by how it impacts other mental processes. Said differently, we think about intelligence in terms of how it enhances (or fails to enhance) other things we do, such as learning, remembering, and problem-solving. Generally, higher intelligence is expected to result in more effective and efficient functioning. When we study intelligence, we are often interested in showing how it impacts functioning in the real-world.

What is creative intelligence?

While creativity is in the name, the capacity to adjust and adapt to change is also a key part of this form of intelligence. Those high in this form of intelligence can think in flexible ways to generate solutions and "think outside the box." This helps them adapt and adjust when confronted with novel problems or situations.

What is savant syndrome?

involves notably superior functioning within a narrow domain (e.g., music; memory; calculation) paired with limited abilities in broader domains of functioning.

What is analytical intelligence?

involves the capacity to reason, think abstractly, and use math and verbal skills effectively. These abilities underlie success in academic-like settings where problems tend to be well-define, possessing a single correct answer

Independence

means that variance in one dimension or factor is unrelated to variance in another dimension or factor. This means that knowing a person's standing on one factor doesn't help us predict his standing on another factor (Thurstone, 1938). In other words, Thurstone was saying there is no overall intelligence. To his mind there was no g. Instead, there were several specific forms of intelligence.

What is General Intelligence Factor

often referred to simply as g, refers to a primary cognitive ability that influences a wide range of intellectual mental tasks.

Let's imagine that Thurstone was right and there is no such thing as g. Instead, there are several types of specific forms of intelligence. So, if Person A scores above average on 1) inductive reasoning, 2) memory, 3) word fluency 4) perceptual speed, 5) spatial ability, and 6) verbal comprehension, Thurstone would... A ...say that Person A's numerical ability is likely above average, because all the other scores are above average B ...say that Person A's numerical ability is likely to be below average, because all the other scores are above average. C ...say that we cannot make a guess on Person A's numerical ability based on the other six scores.

C

The Savant Syndrome of Tony Deblois involves... A ...the ability to recite from memory the train schedules of every city in every state of the U.S. B ...the ability to instantly calculate complex multi-step math problems in seconds. C ...the ability to remember and play thousands of songs on multiple instruments. D ...the ability to draw perfect replicas of objects in the world.

C

Dimensional Nature

Dimensional Nature. We measure and conceptualize intelligence as a dimensional construct that ranges from low to high. Within species, such as humans, it is recognized that individuals will differ in terms of their intelligence, with some being more intelligent than others.

Who Was Charles Spearman?

Early in the 20th century, Charles Spearman began to try and tackle the concept of intelligence in an empirical manner. His findings led him to conclude that intelligence was a general mental capacity impacting many domains of life (Spearman, 1950). He believed that those with higher intelligence would generally meet with more success in academic, social, and applied contexts, than those with lower levels of intelligence. He argued for the concept of a general intelligence.

In what three ways does Sternberg's approach differs from others

1. he frames intelligence less as a capacity, and more as a set of tools that need to be used together to effectively pursue goals (Sternberg, 1988). Thus, Sternberg does not see intelligence as something that passively enhances the individual's life. An intelligent person may behave in less than intelligent ways if he or she does not make use of his intelligence. 2. Sternberg sees intelligence as existing within a larger web of personality characteristics. Successfully pursuing one's goals requires the individual to integrate abilities from different metacomponents. 3. A final difference is that Sternberg's approach greatly emphasizes "successful goal attainment, In other words, if intelligence is something that facilitates success, then those who are successful in pursuing their goals are intelligent. He believes that this requires finding ways to use the three intelligences together.

Relative Differentiation

Like ideas such as like "tall" and "short," one cannot be intelligent or unintelligent. The tallest human is very short when standing next to a giraffe. Instead, we use these ideas in a relative manner. For example, we might say that a person is "taller" or "shorter" than the average person. In the same way, we think of intelligence in relative terms. One cannot be "intelligent," instead one can only be less or more intelligent relative to a group or a standard.

Normal Curve Assumption

The distribution of intelligence within a species (e.g., humans) is expected to fit a normal curve. Thus, most individuals will be of near the average (for that species), a smaller number will be above or below average, and a very small number will be notably above or below average.

Generalization Across Setting.

The impact of intelligence is expected to be expressed in more than a single setting. Thus, in those with high levels of intelligence, we should see enhancing functions in several settings and across many tasks.

What Is Howard Gardner's Theory of Multiple Intelligences?

argues that there are many forms of intelligence beyond verbal abilities, reasoning abilities, visual-spatial abilities, and processing speed. To Gardner, there are multiple types of intelligence. Each is an innate ability that is triggered by interaction with one's environment and helps to solve problems or produce things of cultural value (Gardner, 1983). As part of his theory, Gardner has theorized separate sets of innate mental abilities that can become activated by cultural settings.