| what is intelligence? | Boring (1923) said it was whatever tests measure |
| intelligence test | diagnostic tool designed to measure overall thinking ability |
| higher mental processes | reasoning, understanding and judgement |
| intelligence is linked to what kind of thinking? | abstract thinking |
| abstract thinking | capacity to understand hypothetical concepts |
| western researchers believe intelligence consists of abilities to | - reason abstractly
- learn to adapt to novel environmental circumstances
- acquire knowledge
- benefit from experience |
| G (general intelligence) | hypothetical factor that accounts for overall differences in intellect among people |
| S (specific abilities) | particular ability level in a narrow domain
[compensates for G) |
| fluid intelligence | capacity to learn new ways of solving problems |
| crystallised intelligence | accumulated knowledge of the world acquired over time |
| multiple intelligences | idea that people vary in their ability levels across different domains of intellectual skill |
| what are the 8 different kinds of intelligence? | 1. linguistic
2. logico-mathematical
3. spatial
4. musical
5. bodily-kinaesthetic
6. interpersonal
7. intrapersonal
8. naturalistic |
| triarchic model | model of intelligence proposed by Robert Sternberg positing three distinct types of intelligence |
| what are Sternberg's three distinct types of intelligence? | analytical, practical, and creative |
| analytical intelligence | the ability to reason logically |
| practical intelligence (tacit intelligence) | the ability to solve real world problems, especially involving people |
| creative intelligence (creativity) | the ability to come up with novel and effective answers to questions |
| what is the location of intelligence | areas of the cortex but also the parietal lobe |
| correlation between intelligence and reaction time | intelligent people tend to have a quicker reaction time |
| correlation between intelligence and memory | moderately correlated (causation is unclear) |
| metacognitive skills | knowing what you know about your own knowledge |
| Stanford-Binet IQ tests | intelligence test based on the measure developed by Binet and Simon adapted by Lewis Terman of Stanford University
- norms help to define whether we're under or above the line |
| intelligence quotient (IQ) | systematic means of quantifying differences among people in their intelligence |
| how is IQ measured? | IQ= (mental age)/(chronological age) ∙100 |
| mental age | age corresponding to the average individual's performance on an intelligence test |
| deviation IQ | expression of a person's IQ relative to his or her same-aged peers, helps because it means kids after 16 don't have a decreasing IQ |
| eugenics | movement in the early 20th century to improve a population's genetic stock by encouraging those with good genes to reproduce, preventing those with bad genes from reproducing or both |
| Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) | most widely used intelligence test for adults today, consisting of 15 subtests to assess different types of mental abilities |
| what are the 5 major scores? | 1. overall IQ (fluid)
2. verbal comprehension (crystallised intelligence)
3. perceptual reasoning (fluid)
4. working memory (fluid)
5. processing speed (fluid) |
| commonly used childhood IQ tests | - Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC)
- Wechsler Primary and Preschool Scale of Intelligence (WPPSI) |
| culture fair IQ tests | abstract reasoning measure that does not depend on language and is often believed to be less influenced by cultural factors than other IQ tests are |
| criticism on culture fair IQ test | IQ tests rely too much on language |
| is IQ forever? | they almost never remain the same |
| stability of IQ in adulthood | reasonably stable |
| stability of IQ in infancy and childhood | - not stable (except for really low numbers --> mental retardation)
- habituation speed seems to indicate intelligence |
| assortative mating | the tendency of individuals with similar genes to have children |
| mental retardation | condition characterised by an onset prior to adulthood, an IQ below 70 and an inability to engage in adequate daily functioning |
| gullibility | the susceptibility to being duped by others |
| what are the four gradations? | mild, moderate, severe, and profound |
| most common forms of mental retardation? | - fragile X syndrome
- Down syndrome (extra pair of 21 chromosomes) |
| mosaics | only some of the cells have an extra 21 chromosomes, relatively normal IQ |
| selective placement | adoption agencies frequently place children in homes similar to the biological parents |
| does schooling make us smarter? | lines of evidence suggest that schooling exerts a causal influence on IQ |
| Flynn effect | finding that average IQ scores have been rising at a rate of approximately three points per decade |
| four explanations to rising rate of IQ per decade? | 1. increased test sophistication
2. increased complexity of the modern world
3. better nutrition
4. changes at home and at school |
| sex differences in specific mental abilities | - women are better at verbal tasks, arithmetic calculations, and empathy
- men are better at spatial tasks, geography, mathematic reasoning |
| potential causes of sex differences? | genes and hormones, and environmental |
| within-group heritability | extent to which the variability of a trait within a group is genetically influenced |
| between-group heritability | extent to which differences in a trait between groups is genetically influenced |
| test bias | tendency of a test to predict outcomes better in one group than another |
| stereotype threat | fear that we may confirm a negative group stereotype |
| divergent thinking | capacity to generate many different solutions to a problem |
| convergent thinking | capacity to generate the single best solution to a problem |
| emotional intelligence (EQ) | ability to understand our own emotions and those of others and to apply this information to our daily lives |
| wisdom | application of intelligence toward a common good |
| wise people balance 3 competing interests | 1. concerns about oneself (self-interest)
2. concerns about others
3. concerns about the broader society |
