Intelligence

1. Intelligence Chapter 9

2. In your opinion, does your overall "intelligence" or motivation play a bigger role in your academic success in school? Does your environment influence your academic success? Explain. • http://www.thirteen.org/edonline/concept2class/mi/w1_interactive1.html

3. Just to think about… What is intelligence? How can we measure/test it? Are their ethnic/gender differences?

4. True or False • There may be more than one kind of intelligence. • Two children can answer exactly the same items on an intelligence test correctly, yet one may have an above-average IQ and the other may have a below-average IQ. • When we think we will not succeed at something, we may not try as hard as we can. • Intellectually gifted people are by definition highly creative. • Preschool programs have a long-term effect on the children who attend them. • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=astISOttCQ0

5. Does each of us have an inborn general mental capacity?Can we quantify this capacity as a meaningful number?

6. History • French government required ALL children to attend school • Some incapable of benefiting from “regular” school • Didn’t trust teachers’ subjective judgements • 1904, commission: Binet & Simon

7. Binet & Simon • Assumed all children followed some intellectual development, but some were “retarded” in development • Set out to measure “mental age” (MA) • Purpose: identify children needing special attention • Binet feared assessments would limit/label children

8. Terman (1911) • Binet’s test worked poorly for children in the USA • Changed/re-standardized test and renamed it Stanford-Binet • Promoted widespread use of intelligence testing • “ultimately result in curtailing the reproduction of feeble-mindedness, and in the elimination of an enormous amount of crime, pauperism, and industrial efficiency.”

9. Stern • Derived intelligence quotient (IQ) • IQ = mental age/chronological age X 100 • 100 is the average score • Works well with children but not adults • 2/3 of people between 85-115

11. What is intelligence? • IQ is not a “thing” (can’t view an abstract, immaterial concept as if it were a concrete thing) • Socially constructed concept • Cultures deem “intelligent” whatever attributes/characteristics enable success • Intelligence: abilities to learn from experience, to think rationally, and to deal effectively with others

12. Is it a single overall ability???

13. Different Views… • 1800s, Franz Joseph Gall - phrenology: relationship between shape of skull and mental capabilities • Charles Spearman helped develop factor analysis • Factor analysis – enables researchers to identify clusters of test items that measure a common ability • Spearman believed in general intelligence – g factor • Increase in one intelligence, increase in another

14. Thurston • identified 8 clusters of “primary mental abilities”: • Visual & spatial • Perceptual speed • Numerical ability • Verbal reasoning • Memory • Word fluency • Deductive reasoning • Inductive reasoning

15. Sternberg • Different kinds of intelligences work together • Analytic – ability to solve problems • Creative – ability to deal with new situations • Practical – ability to accomplish everyday tasks

17. Gardner • Intelligence comes in different packages; intellectual “potentials” • Each intelligence is based on different areas of the brain • Linguistic • Logical-mathematical • Visual-spatial • Bodily-kinesthetic • Musical-rhythmical • Interpersonal • Intrapersonal • Naturalistic

19. Review 1. What is the “g factor”? Whose idea was this? 2. What is a major difference between the theories of Thurston and Gardner? 3. What was phrenology? 4. Who developed the IQ quotient? 5. What is the formula for IQ? 6. Why were IQ tests first developed?

20. Emotional Intelligence • Goleman – why are smart people not always successful? • Self-awareness • Mood management • Self-motivation • Impulse control • People skills

21. Creativity • Ability to produce new ideas that are novel and valuable • 5 components: • Expertise • Imaginative thinking skills • Venturesome personality • Intrinsic motivation • Creative environment

22. Not creative BUT want to be?? No worries…  Research offers some advice… • Develop YOUR expertise • Allow time for incubation • Set aside time for the mind to roam freely • Experience other cultures and ways of thinking

23. Assessment • Aptitude – predict ability to learn new skills (college entrance exams) • Achievement – reflects what you have learned (current skills – chapter tests) • Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS-IV) • Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC) - 11 subtests - overall intelligence AND separates verbal/performance (nonverbal) - large differences btw verbal/nonverbal = LD http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V8uUrxfXpJ8

24. Important Concepts • Standardization – process of defining meaningful scores relative to a pretested group • Reliability – yields consistent results • Test-retest reliability – comparing scores earned by the same person on the same test taken at different times • Validity – extent to which a test measures or predicts what it is supposed to

25. The TWO extremes… • Intelligence scores below 70 – mental retardation • Low test score AND difficulty in adapting to the demands of life • 1% of population meet both criteria • Mild  profound • Males outnumber females by 50% • Most, with support, can live in mainstream society • Causes – brain damage, difficulties during childbirth, genetic disorders or abnormalities (Down Syndrome) • Savant Syndrome* • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3oZaCrkCxu8 (musical talent)

27. Figure 9.9 The prevalence and severity of mental retardation. The overall prevalence of mental retardation is roughly 1 to 3% of the general population. The vast majority (85%) of the retarded population is mildly retarded. Only about 15% of the retarded population falls into the subcategories of moderate, severe, or profound retardation.

28. Giftedness • IQ scores 130 or above • Possess outstanding talent or to show the potential for performing at a remarkably high level of accomplishment compared to other people • Tracking: separates “gifted” from “ungifted” students - self-fulfilling prophecy - low self-esteem - widens achievement gap

31. Figure 9.27 Estimated prevalence of psychological disorders among people who achieved creative eminence. Ludwig (1995) studied biographies of 1004 people who had clearly achieved eminence in one of 18 fields and tried to determine whether each person suffered from any specific mental disorders in his or her lifetime. The data summarized here show the prevalence rates for depression and for a mental disorder of any kind for four fields where creativity is often the key to achieving eminence. As you can see, the estimated prevalence of mental illness was extremely elevated among eminent writers, artists, and composers (but not natural scientists) in comparison to the general population, with depression accounting for much of this elevation.

32. Review • 1. What is phrenology? • 2. What is the IQ score for mental retardation? Giftedness? • 3. What is your ACTUAL age also known as? • 4. Thurston theorized that we have ____ _________ __________ _______. • 5. What is the ability to develop novel ideas? • 6. Who theorized emotional intelligence? Why?

33. Intelligence: Heredity or Environment? • Heredity • Family and twin studies • Heritability estimates • Environment • Adoption studies • Cumulative deprivation hypothesis • The Flynn effect • Interaction • The concept of the reaction range Launch Video

34. Figure 9.15 Reaction range. The concept of reaction range posits that heredity sets limits on one’s intellectual potential (represented by the horizontal bars), while the quality of one’s environment influences where one scores within this range (represented by the dots on the bars). People raised in enriched environments should score near the top of their reaction range, whereas people raised in poor-quality environments should score near the bottom of their range. Genetic limits on IQ can be inferred only indirectly, so theorists aren’t sure whether reaction ranges are narrow (like Ted’s) or wide (like Chris’s). The concept of reaction range can explain how two people with similar genetic potential can be quite different in intelligence (compare Tom and Jack) and how two people reared in environments of similar quality can score quite differently (compare Alice and Jack).

35. This issue has far-reaching sociopolitical implications and continues to be a complex controversy. Family studies determine only whether genetic influence on a trait is plausible, not whether it is certain. Family members also share environments. Twin studies provide evidence regarding the role of genetic factors. The basic rationale is that identical and fraternal twins develop under similar environmental conditions, but identical twins share more genes…if identical twins end up more similar on a given characteristic, it must be genetic. A heritability ratio is an estimate of the proportion of trait variability in a population that is determined by variations in genetic inheritance. A heritability estimate is a group statistic and cannot be meaningfully applied to individuals. Adoption studies provide evidence that upbringing plays an important role in mental ability, as adopted children show some resemblance to their foster parents. Also, siblings reared together are more similar in IQ than siblings reared apart. In fact, entirely unrelated children who are reared together show resemblance in IQ. The cumulative deprivation hypothesis holds that children raised in deprived environments will experience a gradual decline in IQ as they grow older. Conversely, children removed from deprived environments and placed in homes that are more conducive for learning show IQ increases. The Flynn effect is the trend, all over the developed world, for IQ scores to increase from one generation to the next. Hypotheses for why this occurs focus on environmental variables, as evolution does not operate in a generation. Clearly, heredity and environment both influence intelligence. Theorists use the term reaction range to refer to genetically determined limits on IQ. The environment determines whether a person will fall at the upper or lower end of their genetically determined range. The next slide illustrates the concept of the reaction range.

36. Figure 9.12 Studies of IQ similarity. The graph shows the mean correlations of IQ scores for people of various types of relationships, as obtained in studies of IQ similarity. Higher correlations indicate greater similarity. The results show that greater genetic similarity is associated with greater similarity in IQ, suggesting that intelligence is partly inherited (compare, for example, the correlations for identical and fraternal twins). However, the results also show that living together is associated with greater IQ similarity, suggesting that intelligence is partly governed by environment (compare, for example, the scores of siblings reared together and reared apart). (Data from McGue et al., 1993)

37. Figure 9.13 The concept of heritability. A heritability ratio is an estimate of the portion of variation in a trait determined by heredity—with the remainder presumably determined by environment—as these pie charts illustrate. Typical heritability estimates for intelligence range between a high of 70% and a low of 50%, although some estimates have fallen outside this range. Bear in mind that heritability ratios are estimates and have certain limitations that are discussed in the text.

39. Figure 9.16 Genetics and between-group differences on a trait. Kamin’s analogy (see text) shows how between-group differences on a trait (the height of corn plants) could be due to environment, even if the trait is largely inherited. The same reasoning presumably applies to ethnic group differences in the trait of human intelligence.

40. Genetic Influences • 5 studies, 63 sets of identical twins reared together = virtually as similar as if the same person took the same test • Fraternal twins are much less similar • Identical twins reared differently – similar scores • Fraternal twins score more alike than other siblings • Adopted children’s scores are MORE similar to biological parents’ • Hereditability: extent to which genetic factors can explain differences in traits from person to person

41. Differences • Curve for whites – 100 • Curve for blacks – 85 • Hispanics between 85-100 • SAT results are similar • Racial gaps – environmental? • BIAS? – self-fulfilling prophecy (women/blacks) • DISCRIMINATION? • GENDER?

42. Figure 9.18 Asian Americans’ academic success. On various measures of educational success, such as the high school graduation rates shown here, the performance of Asian American students tends to exceed that of other ethnic groups in the United States. More research is needed on the matter, but most theorists believe that cultural factors are responsible for Asian Americans’ academic prowess. (Data from Sue & Okazaki, 1990)

44. Environmental Influences • Environment that siblings share doesn’t influence aptitude, but significantly influences achievement • No environmental recipe for “superbabies” beyond normal exposure to sights, sounds, and speech • Preschool & Head-Start Programs (Zigler) - enhance chances for success - short-term cognitive gains - increases school readiness - decreases likelihood of repeating a grade or being placed in special ed

45. Most effective early intervention programs: • Begin earlier/continue longer • More intensive (more days/hours) • Provide children with direct educational experiences • Offer support program for maintaining positive attitudes and behaviors

46. More schooling  higher intelligence Rise in intelligence during school year  drop over the summer Should school be year round?

47. Is this evolutionary? Do our environments encourage these differences?

48. Conclusions • Enables schools to recognize who might benefit from early intervention • Doesn’t measure a person’s worth • Reflects only ONE aspect of personal competence

49. Unanswered Questions