UNIT 5: Cognitive Psychology
PART II: Testing and Individual Differences
Learning Targets
37-1 Discuss how psychologists define intelligence, and present the arguments for g.
37-2 Compare Howard Gardner’s and Robert Sternberg’s theories of multiple intelligences, and discuss the criticisms they have faced.
37-3 Describe the four components of emotional intelligence.
What does it mean to be intelligent?
In many studies, intelligence has been defined as whatever intelligence tests measure, which has tended to be school smarts.
But intelligence is not a quality like
height or weight, which have the same meaning to
everyone worldwide.
People assign this term to the
qualities that enable success in their own time and culture
(Sternberg & Kaufman, 1998).
How is intelligence cultural?
In Cameroon’s equatorial forest, intelligence may reflect understanding the medicinal qualities of local plants.
So, how is intelligence defined?
the ability to learn from experience, solve problems,
and use knowledge to adapt to new situations
Some people have talents in science, others excel in the humanities, and still others are gifted in athletics, art, music, or dance.
A talented artist may be stumped by the simplest math problem, or a brilliant math student may struggle
when discussing literature.
Are all these people intelligent?
What is general intelligence (g)?
According to Charles Spearman and others,
general intelligence, or “g”, underlies all mental abilities and is therefore measured by every task on an intelligence test.
General intelligence is at the heart of all our intelligent behavior, from navigating the sea to excelling in school. Spearman believed people often have special, outstanding abilities, or “s” as well.
He noted that those who score high in one area, such as verbal intelligence, typically score higher than average in other areas, such as spatial or reasoning ability.
What is factor analysis?
a statistical procedure that identifies clusters
of related items (called factors) on a test;
used to identify different dimensions of performance that underlie a person’s total score
Charles Spearman utilized factor analysis in creating his theory of “g” and “s”.
How did the work of L.L. Thurstone contradict and support Spearman’s findings?
L. L. Thurstone, one of Spearman’s early opponents
gave 56 different tests to people and mathematically identified seven clusters of primary mental abilities (word fluency, verbal comprehension, spatial ability, perceptual speed, numerical ability, inductive reasoning, and memory).
This idea of a general mental capacity, “g”, expressed by a single intelligence score was controversial in Spearman’s day, and so it remains.
What is an argument in support of the existence of “g”?
Thurstone did not rank people on a single scale of general aptitude.
But when other investigators studied these profiles, they detected a persistent tendency:
those who excelled in one of the seven clusters generally scored well on the others.
So, the investigators concluded, there was still some evidence of a “g” factor.
What is Howard Gardner’s theory of �multiple intelligences?
Howard Gardner has identified eight relatively independent intelligences, including the verbal and mathematical aptitudes assessed by standardized tests.
What is meant by multiple intelligences?
Intelligence takes many forms. Thus, the computer programmer, the poet, the street-smart adolescent, and the basketball team’s play-making point guard exhibit different kinds of intelligence. (Gardner, 1998)
What are some of Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences?
musical
ability to produce and understand pitch, tempo, and rhythm
visual-spatial
ability to think in images and pictures
logical-mathematical
ability to think abstractly and see patterns and logic and math
What are some additional �Multiple Intelligences?
bodily-kinesthetic
ability to control body movements and handle objects
interpersonal
ability to work well with and understand others emotionally and socially
verbal-linguistic
ability to understand word meanings and sounds
How would you teach first grade students the alphabet if you knew they had strong….
musical intelligence
visual–spatial intelligence
interpersonal intelligence
bodily-kinesthetic intelligence
logical-mathematical intelligence
What is savant syndrome?
a condition in which a person otherwise limited in mental ability has an exceptional specific skill, such as in computation or drawing
People with savant syndrome, have an island of brilliance but often score low on intelligence tests and may have limited or no language ability.
(Treffert, 2010)
Some can compute complicated calculations almost instantly, or identify the day of the week of any given historical date, or render incredible works of art or music.
(Miller, 1999)
Islands of Genius
After a brief helicopter ride over Singapore followed by
five days of drawing, British savant artist Stephen Wiltshire accurately reproduced an aerial view of the city
from memory.
1. What Would You Answer?
Victor is blind, unable to speak, and understands very few words. He is, however, able to hear a piece of music once and play it back flawlessly on the piano. Victor’s abilities best represent
someone with
A. analytical intelligence.
B. a high g factor.
C. savant syndrome.
D. emotional intelligence.
E. intrapersonal intelligence.
How does Robert Sternberg agree �with Howard Gardner?
Robert Sternberg agrees with Gardner that there is more to success than traditional intelligence and that we have multiple intelligences.
But Sternberg’s triarchic theory
proposes three, not eight or nine, intelligences.
Analytical, creative and practical intelligence.
What are the three types of intelligence according to Sternberg?
analytical
Academic problem-solving intelligence is assessed by intelligence tests, which present well-defined problems having a single right answer.
creative
Creative intelligence is demonstrated in innovative smarts: the ability to adapt to new situations and generate novel ideas.
practical
Practical intelligence is required for everyday tasks that may be poorly defined and may have multiple solutions.
2. What Would You Answer?
An intelligence test that asks a person how many uses they can think of for a golf ball is most likely testing a person’s _____ intelligence.
A. linguistic
B. practical
C. creative
D. spatial
E. analytical
How important is “g”?
Research using factor analysis confirms that there is a general intelligence factor: “g” matters
(Johnson et al., 2008)
It predicts performance on various complex
tasks and in various jobs.
(Gottfredson, 2002a,b, 2003a,b)
And extremely high cognitive ability scores predict
exceptional achievements, such as doctoral degrees and publications. (Kuncel & Hezlett, 2010)
Scatterplot analysis.
Use your understanding of scatterplots to interpret the data above.
Does intelligence correlate with income?
Jay Zagorsky tracked 7403 participants in the U.S. National Longitudinal Survey of Youth across 25 years. As shown at right, their intelligence scores correlated +.30, a moderate positive
correlation, with their later income.
What is grit?
In psychology, grit is passion and perseverance in the pursuit of long-term goals.
Success is not a one-ingredient recipe.
High intelligence may help you get into a good college and ultimately a desired profession, but it won’t make
you successful once there.
Success is a combination of talent and grit- those who become highly successful tend also to be conscientious, well-connected, and doggedly energetic.
How do nature and nurture combine to produce success?
A common ingredient of expert performance in chess, dance, sports, computer programming, music, and medicine is “about 10 years of intense, daily practice.”
(Ericsson, 2007; Ericsson & Pool, 2016; Simon & Chase, 1973)
Becoming a professional musician or an elite
athlete requires, first, native ability.
(Macnamara et al., 2014, 2016)
But it also requires years of practice—about 11,000 hours on average, and a minimum of 3000 hours. (Campitelli & Gobet, 2011)
What is emotional intelligence?
the ability to perceive, understand, manage,
and use emotions
Some psychologists have explored our social intelligence—the know-how involved in
understanding social situations and managing ourselves successfully, a critical part of which is
emotional intelligence.
(Cantor & Kihlstrom, 1987)
What are four abilities that underlie�emotional intelligence?
Perceiving emotions (recognizing them in faces, music, and stories, and identifying one’s own emotions).
Understanding emotions (predicting them and how they may change and blend).
Managing emotions (knowing how to express them in varied situations, and how to manage others’ emotions).
Using emotions to facilitate adaptive or creative thinking.
What are characteristics of emotionally intelligent people?
Emotionally intelligent people more often succeed
in relationship, career, and parenting situations
than do academically smarter but less
emotionally intelligent people.
(Cherniss, 2010a,b; Czarna et al., 2016; Miao et al., 2016).
Emotionally intelligent people tend to be happy and healthy.
(Sánchez-Álvarez et al., 2016; Schutte et al., 2007, 2016)
They can delay gratification in pursuit of long-range rewards
A review of intelligence theories.
AP® Exam Tip
Familiarize yourself with the table on the
previous slide.
Be able to compare and contrast the contributions
of the intelligence theorists
(e.g., Spearman, Gardner, Sternberg).
Learning Target 37-1 Review
Discuss how psychologists define
intelligence, and present the
arguments for “g”.
Learning Target 37-1 Review cont.
Discuss how psychologists define
intelligence, and present the
arguments for “g”.
Learning Target 37-2 Review
Compare Gardner’s and Sternberg’s
theories of multiple intelligences, and
discuss the criticisms they have faced.
Learning Target 37-2 Review cont.
Compare Gardner’s and Sternberg’s
theories of multiple intelligences, and
discuss the criticisms they have faced.
Learning Target 37-3 Review
Describe the four components of
emotional intelligence.