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INTELLIGENCE ACROSS CULTURES. LECTURE OUTLINE. I Background and objectives II Intelligence and its measurement Generalized mental ability (g) Intelligence tests IQ Lay notions of intelligence. LECTURE OUTLINE (cont). III Intelligence in cultural context
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LECTURE OUTLINE • I Background and objectives • II Intelligence and its measurement • Generalized mental ability (g) • Intelligence tests • IQ • Lay notions of intelligence
LECTURE OUTLINE(cont) • III Intelligence in cultural context • Cultural variations in notions of intelligence • Intelligence as adaptation to the environment • Intelligence and schooling • Successful intelligence • IV Testing intelligence across cultures • V Conclusions
I Objectives • To consider the nature of intelligence and its meaning across cultures • To explore the assessment of intelligence across cultures
II Intelligence and its measurement • Generalized versus specific abilities • G (generalized intelligence; Spearman, 1927) • Specific factors: Verbal, memory, reasoning, spatial (Thurstone, 1938) • Fluid and crystallized intelligence
INTELLIGENCE TESTS • Binet • Stanford-Binet • Raven’s Progressive Matrices • Wechsler • WAIS (for adults) • WISC (for children)
Information Digit span Vocabulary Arithmetic Comprehension Similarities Picture completion Picture arrangement Block design Digit symbol Object assembly WECHSLERVerbal Nonverbal
Cultural Differences in IQ Median IQ in : • Chinese in Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan and China 110 • Japanese in Japan 103 • East Asians in North America 103 • Japanese (abstract) 104.5 (spatial) 114 • American and British (abstract) 100 (spatial) 100
Cultural Differences in IQ Median IQ in Hong Kong (Chan) Chinese 110 white 100 Median IQ on Raven’s Progressive Matrices: Study of 9 year olds (Lynn) Hong Kong 113 Japan 110 British 100
Lay notions of intelligence encompass practical problem solving, verbal and social competence abilities. Law of cultural differentiation: Cultural factors prescribe what shall be learned and at what age; consequently different cultural environments lead to the development of different patterns of ability.(Ferguson, 1956, p. 121)
CULTURAL CONCEPTIONS OF INTELLIGENCE • Luo of Kenya (Grigorenko et al., 1999) rieko (knowledge and skills) luoro (respect) winjo (understanding social roles) paro (initiative)
CULTURAL CONCEPTIONS OF INTELLIGENCE • Baganda (Wober) • intelligence as socially oriented behaviour to benefit the collective • Shona (Irvine) • Ungwaru (dispositional intelligence) • Uchenjeri (social intelligence)
CULTURAL CONCEPTIONS OF INTELLIGENCE • Taiwanese (Yang & Sternberg) • intelligence includes a cognitive factor, interpersonal and intrapersonal factors, intellectual self assertion and intellectual self enhancement
CULTURAL CONCEPTIONS OF INTELLIGENCE • Comparative studies by Keats • Australians place more emphasis on academic skills, reading, writing, speaking • Malays place more emphasis on social and practical skills • Chinese place more emphasis on rote memory
INTELLIGENCE AS ADAPTATION TO THE ENVIRONMENT • Mathematics in Brazilian street children (Carraher et al., 1985) • Nzelu and “intelligence” in Zimbabwe (Serpell, 1979) • Tacit knowledge and “intelligence” in Kenyan children (Sternberg et al., 2001)
Practical intelligence does not relate to “formal” intelligence or academic performance
What constitutes the components of intelligence is universal. The content that constitutes the application of these components is shaped by environmental and cultural factors.
SUCCESSFUL INTELLIGENCE • Intelligence is defined in terms of the ability to achieve success in life • Ability to achieve success depends on capitalizing on one’s strengths and compensating for weaknesses • Success is attained through the balance of analytical, practical and creative abilities • Balance of abilities is achieved in order to adapt to and shape the environment
MEASURING INTELLIGENCE • Catalogue activities that should be mastered • Sample important tasks as a subset of activities • Seek tasks that discriminate individuals • Turn selected tasks into test items
Because intelligence is embedded in culture,there can never be a culture- fair intelligence test. Activities that are functional and adaptive, i.e., intelligent, vary across cultures. Cole
QUESTIONS • Do we need a common definition of intelligence? • Will modernization make the concept of intelligence more similar across cultures?