Chapter 11: Intelligence
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CHAPTER 11: INTELLIGENCE
I. Defining Intelligence
A. Alfred Binet
B. Vocabulary
1. intelligence – an overall capacity to think rationally, to act purposefully, and to deal effectively with the environment.
2. operational definition – the operations (actions/procedures) used to measure a concept.
3. aptitude – a capacity for learning certain abilities.
4. special aptitude test – test to predict a person’s likelihood of succeeding in a particular area of work or skill.
5. multiple aptitude test – test that measures two or more aptitude.
6. general intelligence test – test that measures a wide variety of mental abilities.
C. Reliability and Validity
1. reliability – the ability of a test to yield the same score, or nearly the same score, each time it is given to the same person.
a. test-retest reliability.
b. split-half reliability.
c. equivalent-forms reliability.
2. validity – the ability of a test to measure what it purports to measure
a. criterion validity – comparing test scores with actual performance (scores on LSAT to grades in law school).
D. Test Characteristics
1. objective – a test is objective if that test gives the same score when different people correct it.
2. standardization – a test is standardized if standards have been established for administering and interpreting the scores of the test.
3. norm – an average score for a designated group of people.
II. Testing Intelligence
A. Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scales, 5th Edition – widely used individual test of intelligence; a direct descendant of Alfred Binet’s first intelligence test. Five Aspects of Intelligence:
1. Fluid reasoning – reasoning.
2. Knowledge – general information.
3. Quantitative reasoning – solve problems involving numbers.
4. Visual-Spatial processing – see patterns and relationships in visual displays.
5. Working memory – recall, sort, and apply information.
B. Intelligence Quotients
1. chronological age – person’s age in years.
2. mental age – average mental ability displayed by people of a given age.
3. intelligence quotient (IQ) – an index of intelligence defined as mental age divided by chronological age and multiplied by 100.
4. deviation IQ – an IQ obtained statistically from a person’s relative standing in his/her age group; i.e., how far above or below average the person’s score was relative to other scores.
5. stability of IQ – not very dependable until about age 6
6. terminal decline – an abrupt decline in measured intelligence about 5 years before death.
C. Wechsler Tests
1. Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-3rd Edition – adult intelligence test that rates both verbal and performance intelligence.
2. Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-3rd Edition – intelligence test for children that rates both verbal and performance intelligence.
3. performance intelligence – intelligence measured by solving puzzles, assembling objects, completing pictures, and performing other nonverbal tasks.
4. verbal intelligence – intelligence measured by answering questions involving vocabulary, general information, arithmetic, and other language- or symbol-oriented tasks.
D. Group Tests
1. individual intelligence test – a test of intelligence designed to be given to a single individual by a trained specialist.
2. group intelligence test – any intelligence test that can be administered to a group of people with minimal supervision.
3. scholastic aptitude tests – SAT, LSAT, GRE, ACT
III. Variations in Intelligence
A. Normal curve – a bell shaped curve characterized by a large number of scores in a middle area, tapering to very few extremely high and low scores.
B. Sex
C. IQ and Achievement - .50
IV. Mentally Gifted – 2% of population
A. Gifted Children
1. Achievement
2. Identifying Gifted Children
a. giftedness – either the possession of a high IQ or special talents or aptitudes.
b. general ability factor – general mental ability presumed to explain performance on a wide variety of tasks.
3. GATE (Gifted and Talented Education)
V. Mental Retardation – 2% of population
A. Vocabulary
1. mentally retardation – presence of a developmental disability, an IQ score below 70, or a significant impairment of adaptive behavior.
2. adaptive behaviors – basic skills and actions considered necessary for self-care and for dealing successfully with the environment.
3. developmentally disabled
B. Levels of Retardation
1. profoundly retarded – IQ below 25.
2. severely retarded – IQ of 25 – 40.
3. moderately retarded – IQ of 40 – 55.
4. mildly retarded – IQ of 55 – 70; 85% of population.
5. borderline retarded – IQ of 70 to 85.
C. Causes of Retardation
1. Familiar retardation – mild mental retardation associated with homes that are intellectually, nutritionally, and emotionally impoverished; about 30/40%.
D. Organic Sources of Retardation
1. Vocabulary
a. birth injury – any injury or damage that occurs to an infant during delivery.
b. fetal damage – a congenital problem; i.e., damage or injury that occurs to the fetus during prenatal development.
c. metabolic disorder – any disorder in metabolism (rate of energy production and use in the body).
d. genetic abnormality – any abnormality in the genes, including missing genes, extra genes, of defective genes.
2. PKU – phenylketonuria: a genetic disease that allows phenylpyruvic acid to accumulate in the body.
3. microcephaly – a disorder in which the head and brain are abnormally small. Often found in FAS.
4. hydrocephaly – a buildup of cerebrospinal fluid within brain cavities; placement of a “shunt” allow effective treatment.
5. cretinism – stunted growth and mental retardation caused by an insufficient supply of thyroid hormone.
6. Down syndrome – a genetic disorder caused by the presence of an extra chromosome (trisomy 21); results in mental retardation; eventually AD.
7. Fragile X syndrome – genetic form of mental retardation caused by a defect in the X chromosome; mild, then severely retarded as adult; are hyperactive; more boys affected; 1/1,200.
VI. Heredity and Environment
A. Hereditary Influences
1. eugenics – selective breeding for desirable characteristics.
2. twin studies
a. fraternal twins – twins conceived from two separate eggs (.62).
b. identical twins – twins who develop from a single egg and have identical genes (.86).
B. Environmental Influences
1. IQ and Environment
a. early childhood education programs – programs that provide stimulating intellectual experiences, typically for disadvantaged preschoolers.
VII. New Approaches to Intelligence
A. Intelligent Nervous System – speed of processing (speed with which a person can mentally process information).
B. Intelligent Information Processing
1. inspection time – amount of time a person must look at a stimulus to make a correct judgment about it.
2. neural intelligence – innate speed and efficiency of a person’s brain and nervous system.
3. experiential intelligence – specialized knowledge and skills acquired through learning and experience.
4. reflective intelligence – ability to become aware of one’s own thinking habits.
5. metacognitive skills – an ability to manage one’s own thinking and problem solving efforts.
C. Multiple Intelligence – Howard Gardner’s theory that there are several specialized types of intellectual ability including: language, logic/math, visual/spatial thinking, music, bodily/kinesthetic skills, intrapersonal skills, interpersonal skills, and naturalist skills.
D. g-factor – a core of general intellectual ability that is assumed to explain the high correlations among various intelligence – Wechsler IQ tests are based on this view of intelligence.
VIII. Culture-Fair Tests – test designed to minimize the importance of skills and knowledge that may be more common in some cultures than in others.