Intelligence

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Intelligence

• Intelligence
• Creativity
• Psychometrics tests measurements
• Cognitive approach

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The Psychometric Approach

• How do you define Intelligence?
• Theorists use narrow, operational definitions
• Psychometricians do not claim that what is
  measured by an intelligence test is a good
  representation of real-world intelligence which
  is a broader concept
• Is it useful?

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Does g exist?

• One of the longest-running debates in psychology
  
• global intelligence, a general ability
• specific abilities
• ..More a matter of emphasis
• Intelligence is what intelligence tests measure
• Edward Boring

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Psychometric approach cont.

• Psychometric approach focuses on how well people
  perform on standardized mental tests and with
  what the scores correlate
• Achievement tests - based on learning
• Aptitude tests--measure the ability to acquire
  skills in the future
• ---the difference is really one of degree
  and intended use since all are based to some
  extent on experience with words, objects, etc.

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Invention of IQ Tests

• Alfred Binet 1904 Mental Age
• Theodore Simon
• Lewis Terman 1916 Stanford IQ
• Divided childs mental age by the
• childs chronological age to yield an
• Intelligence Quotient (IQ)
• All average children, regardless of age,
• would have an IQ of 100

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Binet Test comes to America

• Lewis Terman revised Binets test
• Devised norms for American kids
• Stanford- Binet Intelligence Scale 1916
• Been updated many times
• David Wechsler Wechsler Adult
• Intelligence Scale (WAIS) (WISC)
• ---Probably the best IQ test for adults
• ---Different subscales (Verbal vs..
  Performance)
• He had a WAIS IQ of ..

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IQ tests cont.

• Todays tests based on norms rather than MA
• Average is still set at 100
• SD usually 15
• 2/3 score between 85 and 115

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New uses in America

• Binet thought the tests could be useful for
  identifying children with learning problems--not
  to rank normal children
• In America, the original purpose was lost
• The tests came to be used to categorize people in
  school and in the armed services according to
  their natural ability.
• Army alpha
• Army beta (no English required)

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More harm than good?

• Identify mentally retarded
• Identify gifted
• Selection for jobs and schools
• Inappropriate use has prompted revisions in use
  for students placed in special education
  classes--performance plus tests
• Cognitive approach

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Intelligence, IQ, Creativity 1

• You cannot be anything you want to be.
• Sorry. We have different capabilities
  and weaknesses. We need to capitalize on our
  strengths and compensate for our weaknesses. It
  is a bad idea to tell kids this--it is not true.

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Intelligence, IQ, Creativity cont.

• 2. Psychometrics is a very sophisticated field
  which uses applied mathematics to measure
  psychological and behavioral attributes and make
  predictions. Psychometricians construct,
  standardize, validate tests. Many people who
  criticize tests do not understand test theory or
  the mathematics behind test construction.

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Intelligence, IQ, Creativity 2

• 3. There is a difference between criticizing a
  test, i.e., is a test valid, and criticizing its
  inappropriate use, i.e., should it be used for a
  certain purpose. Science issues versus values,
  policy, political issues. A test may be valid
  but you still might not want to use it for a
  particular purpose--e.g., IQ test for chefs.

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Intelligence, IQ, Creativity 3

• People who do not understand psychometrics often
  use tests inappropriately and even draw
  unwarranted conclusions and make decisions that
  hurt people on the basis of the tests. Most
  trained psychologists would not do this although
  unfortunately some have. Some historical abuses
  have given the testing industry a bad name.
  Feebleminded.
• When there is money to be made, sometimes
  ethics are compromised.

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Intelligence, IQ, Creativity 4

• 5. In the testing field, bias is a statistical
  concept and has a statistical answer. Is the
  test equally predictive? Are the slopes the
  same? Some historical abuses have clouded this
  issue. Political issues and scientific issues get
  confused here again.

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Intelligence, IQ, Creativity 5

• 6. One test score is not enough. A trained
  psychometrician (and most Ph.D. psychologists, I
  hope) know better than to make an important
  decision about a person based on one test or a
  single test administration. Labeling "retarded"
  or college admissions. Multiple pieces of
  evidence including performance are better.

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Intelligence, IQ Creativity

• 7. If you dont like the use of standardized
  tests, what is a fairer alternative? Often there
  is no fairer alternative that is practical. The
  abuses have been much greater when alternatives
  such as interviews have been used.
• 8. A test is nothing more than a short sample of
  behavior. If you have a better sample of what you
  want to understand or predict, then use it.

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Important People in the History of the Study of
Intelligence

• 1. Galton- -devised correlation coefficient
• 2. Binet- -devised the first intelligence test
• 3. Terman- -(Stanford-Binet Intelligence
• Test), IQ, Study of Geniuses
• 4. Spearman--General Intelligence (g) Used factor
  analysis.

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Intelligence, cont.

• 5. Thurstone-- 7 Primary Mental Abilities
• 6. Wechsler-- developed the WAIS,
• separate performance/verbal scales
• 7. Robert Sternberg--Triarchic Theory of
• Intelligence, practical intelligence,
• creativity
• 8. Howard Gardner--Multiple Intelligences

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Intelligence Testing/Creativity 1

• 1. Intelligence testing is useful for predicting
  academic success (i.e., grades) and predicting
  success in some occupations.
• 2. Intelligence tests are not perfect for
  predicting academic success because they do not
  measure motivation, creativity, social skills,
  and things such as artistic ability, musical
  ability, dramatic ability, and physical abilities
  all of which may contribute to academic success.

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Intelligence Creativity

• 3. Intelligence tests predict success in school
  better than success in life, in part, because
  success in life depends on social/practical
  intelligence.
• R. Sternberg has tried (with minimal success) to
  measure social/practical intelligence.

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Intelligence Testing/Creativity 2

• 4. Research psychologists are interested in
  finding better ways to describe and understand
  the construct "intelligence".
• Traditional tests tended to emphasize
  analytical reasoning and memory.
• Sternberg argues that practical intelligence
  and creativity need to be included in the
  construct.

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Intelligence Testing Creativity

• 5. "Intelligence is the ability to adapt to,
  select, and shape environments". (Sternberg).
  What is considered "intelligent behavior" and
  valued by the culture, varies from culture to
  culture.

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Intelligence Testing/Creativity 3

• 6. If we didnt have the concept "intelligence",
  we would probably invent something like it.
• Cognitive abilities, analytical reasoning
  abilities, scholastic aptitude, etc., are all
  euphemisms.

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Intelligence Testing/Creativity cont. 3

• We need to be able to determine on occasion
  when a person is mentally ill as opposed to
  mentally slow or suffering from brain damage,
  what people can do in schools and jobs, when they
  need special help and so forth.
• Too expensive and time consuming to allow
  everyone to do everything and then see who can do
  the job or school work. We dont have the
  resources.

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Intelligence Testing/Creativity 4

• 7. The historical concept is too narrow. It needs
  to be expanded.
• 8. Cognitive psychologists want to know "how"
  people solve problems in addition to whether or
  not they get the right answer (the psychometric
  approach).

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Intelligence testing/creativity cont.

• 9. It is still debatable whether "intelligence"
  is best thought of as a single trait that cuts
  across many different domains (analytical
  reasoning ability, e.g.,) or many separate types
  of abilities or intelligences. No agreement on
  this, even today.

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Intelligence testing/creativity cont.

• 10. Both genetics and the environment play
  significant roles in intelligence, but how much
  intelligence can be improved by enriching the
  environment is not really known. Studies
  conflict. Going from an impoverished environment
  to an enriched one definitely helps. How early
  one needs to intervene is not known, but the
  earlier the better, probably by 2 yrs. old.

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Intelligence Testing/Creativity 5

• 11. Genetics
• (a) Over 50 different studies
  (Erlenmeyer-Kimling Jarvik (1963) have shown
  that the more genes people have in common, the
  more similar the IQ. MZ always higher than DZ.
• (b) MZ Twins reared apart are remarkably
  similar in intelligence.

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Correlations in IQHenderson, 1982

• Relationship r of pairs
• Individual with self .87 456
• MZ twins .86 1417
• MZ apart .75
• DZ twins .62 1329
• Siblings .41 5350
• Sibs apart .21 203

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Creativity

• Creativity is overrated
• Too much education can be bad
• Different types of intelligence and cognitive
  styles are valuable for society
• Creativity big C and little c
• Creativity occurs is all fields--business,
  military (Alexander), sports, leadership

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Creativity cont.

• Creativity personality vs. intelligence
• Sell your ideas
• Creativity tests are not very good
• Creativity can be trained in children
• Societies/culture make a difference
• Persistence hard work are extremely
  important--dont believe most of the legends

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How creativity has been studied

• Societies that foster it
• Biographies of the very creative
• Different areas--science, literature, inventions
• Development in children
• Psychology of the person
• Cognitive processes involved
• Personality
• Tests

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Creativity cont.

• Creative people work very hard. 70 hrs per wk
• on the average.
• After IQ of about 125, increases in IQ dont add
• to creativity.
• Divergent thinking example How many uses can
• you think of for a brick?
• Overall there is no relation with mental illness
  although there are exceptions

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Creativity 1

• Creativity is a sociocultural judgment of the
  novelty, appropriateness, quality, and importance
  of a product. 
•   A person is creative when he or she regularly
  produces creative products. 
•   It is closer to domain-specificity than to
  domain-generality (r .37 across domains) 
•   Difference between creative potential and
  creative performance 

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Creativity 2 Six Personal Resources

•  
• 1.  Intelligence- insightful, analytical,
• ability to sell ones ideas 
• 2.  Knowledge - Too much knowledge
• can lead to entrenched thinking.
• Moderate may be best although
• there are exceptions 
• 3.  Thinking styles- question the norms 

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Creativity 2 cont.

• 4.  Personality - risk takers, have the courage
  to stand
• up for their beliefs in the face of
  ridicule (Galileo,
• Freud, Semmelweiss, e.g.) 
• 5.  Motivation - intrinsic motivation, high
  energy, task-
• focused
• 6.  Environmental context 
• Divergent thinking
• Risk-aversion (low tolerance for failure) 

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Creativity  Stages in the Creative Process

• 1.  Preparation 
• 2.  Incubation/frustration 
• 3.  Illumination/Inspiration/Insight 
• 4.  Verification/hypothesis testing 
• 5.  Communication of results