Unit XI: Testing & Individual Differences Ms. Justice

AP Psychology

2014-2015

Unit XI - Overview

60 – Introduction to Intelligence

61 – Assessing Intelligence

62 – The Dynamics of Intelligence

63 – Studying Genetic & Environmental Influences on Intelligence

64 – Group Differences & the Question of Bias

Unit XI: Testing & Individual Differences

Module 60

Introduction to Intelligence

Defining Intelligence 60-1

What is Intelligence?

Intelligence (in all cultures) is the ability to learn from experience, solve problems, and use our knowledge to adapt to new situations.

In research studies, intelligence is whatever the intelligence test measures, which has tended to be “school smarts.”

60-1

Is Intelligence One General Ability?

60-2

General Intelligence

• Charles Spearman (1863-1945) believed we have one general intelligence (g).

• He thought that a common skill set, the g factor, underlies all intelligent behavior

For example, people who do well on vocabulary examinations do well on paragraph comprehension

examinations, a cluster that helps define verbal intelligence.

60-2

Multiple Intelligences 60-3

Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences

• Howard Gardner (1983, 1999) supports the idea that intelligence comes in multiple forms.

• Gardner notes that brain damage may diminish one type of ability but not others.

• People with savant syndrome excel in abilities unrelated to general intelligence.

60-3

Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences 60-3

Sternberg: Multiple Intelligences

Robert Sternberg (1985, 1999, 2003) also agrees with Gardner, but suggests 3 intelligences rather than 8:

1. Analytical Intelligence: Intelligence that is assessed by intelligence tests (academic problem-solving).

2. Creative Intelligence: Intelligence that makes us adapt to novel situations, generating novel ideas.

3. Practical Intelligence: Intelligence that is required for everyday tasks (e.g. street smarts).

60-3

Emotional Intelligence 60-4

Emotional Intelligence

Emotional intelligence is the ability to perceive, understand, manage and use emotions.

60-4

Emotional Intelligence: Criticism

• Gardner and others criticize the idea of emotional intelligence

• He warns that if we stretch “intelligence” to include everything we prize, it will lose its meaning

60-4

Brain Size & Complexity 60-5

Brain Size & Complexity

• Einstein’s brain was average size, but his parietal lobe’s lower region was 15% larger than average (center for mathematical and spatial information)

• Highly educated people die with 17% more synapses

• Higher intelligence scores are linked with more gray matter (neural cell bodies) in areas involved in memory, attention, and language

60-5

Brain Function 60-6

Brain Function

• People who score high on intelligence tests tend to have agile brains & score high in speed of perception and speed of neural processing

60-6