Intelligence

1. Intelligence

2. Theories of intelligence

3. Intelligence v. Achievement • Achievement  the knowledge and skills gained from experience • Achievement focuses on the things you know and can do • Achievement involves specific content, such as history, Spanish, calculus, or music • Intelligence  the abilities to learn from experience, to think rationally, and to deal effectively with others

4. Spearman’s Two-Factor Theory • Charles Spearman suggested that general intelligence, which he labeled g, underlies all of our intellectual abilities • The g factor represents the abilities to reason and solve problems • The SATs, which breaks intelligence into verbal, quantitative, and writing skills, has been shown to reflect a unified factor, which some psychologists define as g • Spearman suggested that specific factors account for people’s specific abilities, this is referred to a s

5. Psychologist Howard Gardner proposes that that are multiple types of intelligences instead of one. Gardner refers to specific talents as intelligences because they can be quite different from one another. Gardner also suggests that each intelligence is independent of the others.

6. Discussion • Is bodily-kinesthetic intelligence really intelligence, in your opinion? Or is it merely talent? • Is there a difference between intelligence and talent? • Do you have to be intelligent to be talented? • What about musical intelligence, or interpersonal intelligence? • Do you consider these to be measures of intelligence, as Gardner does, or something else?

7. Criticism of Gardner’s Theory • Critics state that exceptional abilities in the musical or bodily-kinesthetic areas are not really what is meant by intelligence • They also argue that those skills are special talents and that being talented is not the same thing as being intelligent

8. Analytical Ability, Creativity, and “Street Smarts” • Psychologist Robert Sternberg breaks intelligence into three categories: analytical intelligence (type of intelligence used in academics), creative intelligence, and practical intelligence (“street smarts”) • Practical intelligence includes abilities such as knowing how to discuss a grade with a teacher or what to do if you are stuck somewhere and you’ve lost your wallet

9. Sternberg’s Triarchic Model Ability to deal with new situations Problem solving skills Creative ANALYTIC practical Ability to accomplish everyday tasks

10. Emotional Intelligence • Psychologist Daniel Goleman proposed that people have a type of intelligence known as emotional intelligence • Emotion intelligence consists of five factors that are involved in success in school or on the job: • Self-awareness: the ability to recognize our own feelings • Mood management: the ability to distract oneself from an uncomfortable feeling • Self-motivation: the ability to move ahead with confidence and enthusiasm • Impulse control: the ability to delay pleasure until the task at hand has been accomplished • People skills: the ability to empathize, understand, communicate, and cooperate with others

11. Measures of intelligence

12. The Stanford-Binet Scale • In the early 1900s, educators in the French public school system wanted a test that could better identify children who may need special educational attention • French psychologist, Alfred Binet, devised the first modern intelligence test • Binet believed that intelligence increased with age, so his test contained questions for children of different age levels • The test yielded a score called a Mental Age (MA), which showed the intelligence level at which a child was functioning • In 1916, the test was brought to the United States and revised by Louis Terman of Stanford University; it became known as the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale (SBIS)

13. Intelligence Quotient • The version of the Stanford-Binet Scale used today provides an intelligence quotient (IQ), not an MA • IQ  a number that reflects the relationship between a child’s mental age and his or her chronological age (CA) • IQ = Mental Age (MA)/Chronological Age (CA) * 100 • IQ is an example of a transformed score (any score that has been changed from a raw score in a systematic way)

14. Wechsler Scales • Although the Stanford-Binet Scale is the “classic” individual intelligence test, the scale established by David Wechsler is more widely used • Wechsler developed multiple intelligence tests for children and adults, the most common being the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS-R) • The Wechsler scales consist of several subtests, which each measure a different intelligence skill • Scores on the Wechsler tests are based on a comparison of a person’s answers with the answers of others in the same age group

17. Reliability and Validity • Reliability  refers to the test’s consistency • Test-retest reliability  determined by comparing scores earned by the same person on the same test taken at different times • Validity  the test must measure what it is supposed to measure • To see if the test is valid, it is compared with outside standards of norms

18. Discussion • Do you feel comfortable taking tests? Why or why not? Do you feel that you perform well on tests? • Are IQ scores a good measure of intelligence? An objective measure of intelligence? • Do you think intelligence can be measured? • What criticisms might be leveled against IQ tests?

19. Criticisms of IQ tests • Test anxiety • Chance guesses • Cultural bias • Motivation factor • Develop test questions that might be biased. For example, develop questions that would be difficult for people of your parent’s age group to answer, that might be easier for people your own age to answer.

20. Self Fulfilling Prophecy • Sociologist Robert K. Merton coined the phrase “self-fulfilling prophecy” to describe a situation in which a person’s expectations can lead to the fulfillment of those expectations. • How might the idea of a self-fulfilling prophecy apply to test taking?

21. Differences in intelligence

22. Distribution of IQ Scores Retardation Borderline Superior Gifted Low Average High Average Slow Learner Above Average

23. Mental Retardation • IQ score of 70 or below = official definition of mental retardation • Several levels of classification: • Mild retardation  80% of people with retardation are classified as mildly retarded, with an IQ ranging from 50-70 • People is this category are often able to learn many different skills and can hold various jobs • Moderate retardation  people with an IQ ranging from 35-49 • People in this range will often have difficulty with reading, writing, and basic arithmetic • Severe retardation  people with an IQ ranging from 34-20 • Usually will require constant supervision and may have difficulty understanding speech • Profound retardation  people with an IQ lower than 20 • Usually will have extreme difficulty with communication and require constant care

24. Giftedness • People are considered gifted if they have an IQ or 130 or higher • Gifted  to possess outstanding talent or to show the potential for performing at remarkably high levels of accomplishing when compared with other people of the same age, experience, or environment • Many researchers believe that motivation and creativity contribute to giftedness

25. Creativity • Giftedness is often linked to creativity • Creativity  the ability to invent new solutions to problems or to create original or ingenious materials • You do not have to be gifted to be creative

26. Creativity • Gardner (the 8 intelligences guy) did a study of some of the most creative people of the 20th century. • He studied Sigmund Freud, Albert Einstein, Pablo Picasso, Igor Stravinsky, T.S. Eliot, Martha Graham, and Mohandas Gandhi. • Gardner called these people “Exceptional Creators”. Why would he have considered these people exceptionally creative? (What did these people do that made them so special?)

27. The exceptional creator • Gardner thought ECs shared these general qualities • Comes from outside a city • Family neither wealthy or poor • Upbringing is strict • Family values learning • Discovers talent at early age • Moves to city as adult • Works tirelessly • Stubborn • Deals with adversity well How might these qualities help make someone exceptionally accomplished? Do you think these rules apply to all creative people, or are just a coincidence in this group?

28. Discussion • What do you think qualifies a person as intelligent? • Does a person need to be intelligent to be creative? • Does a person need to be creative to be intelligent? • Do intelligent people always do well in school? • Does a person need to be intelligent in many different ways for you to consider them intelligent? Or is one particular talent enough to qualify someone as intelligent?

29. What influences intelligence?

30. Influences on Intelligence • A survey conducted by Mark Snyderman and Stanley Rothman of 1,020 psychologists and educators revealed the following results: • 45% believe that differences in IQ scores among people reflect both genetic and environmental factors • 15% believe that these differences reflect environmental factors alone • 1% believe that intelligence is determined entirely by genetic factors • 24% believe that there is not enough research information to support any particular opinion

31. Genetic Influences • Heritability  the extent to which variations in a trait from person to person can be explained by genetic factors • Most studies suggest that the heritability of intelligence is 40-60%

32. Environmental Influences • Studies show that home environment and types of parenting influence intelligence • Factors include: • Parents are emotionally and verbally responsive to children’s needs • Parents provide enjoyable and educational toys • Parents are involved in their children’s activities • Parents provide varied daily experiences during the preschool years • Home environment is well organized and safe • Children are encouraged to be independent • Preschool programs, like Head Start, have been established to give young children an enriched early education

33. Class Discussion • “Tracking” is a big debate in education. Do you think that people should be grouped according to intelligence level, or not? Why?