UNIT 11 IntelligenceTest: Tuesday March 10th

Unit Overview1. What is Intelligence?

2. Assessing Intelligence

3. The Dynamics of Intelligence

4. Genetic & Environmental Influences on Intelligence

Click on the any of the above hyperlinks to go to that section in the presentation.

Intelligence is socially constructed…intelligence is defined according to the attributes that enable success in a particular culture

Intelligence tests are used to assess individuals‘ mental aptitudes and compare them with those of others.

When we refer to someone's IQ as if it were a fixed and objectively real trait such as height, we commit a reasoning error called…reification

What is Intelligence?Intelligence

mental quality consisting of the ability to learn from experience, solve problems, & use knowledge to adapt to new situations.

Savant syndrome

Intelligence test Measure mental aptitude; compare to others; numerical

value

Would Savant Syndrome be

more supportive of Sperman’s or Gardner’s view of intelligence?

Why?

Kim Peak Brain Scanhttp://

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Auufbu_ZdDI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAfaM_CBvP8

Stephen Wiltshire

Is Intelligence One General Ability or Several Specific Abilities?

SpearmanGeneral intelligence (g)Factor analysis -

- how is this used in intelligence testing? To answer the question: Is intelligence a single trait or a collection of distinct

abilities?

Thurstone’s counter argument identified seven clusters of primary mental abilities,

including word fluency, memory, and inductive reasoning.

ga general intelligence that underlies successful performance on a wide variety of tasks.

Supporters of g support

numerical IQ score

Is Intelligence One General Ability or Several Specific Abilities?

Theories of Multiple IntelligencesGardner’s Eight Intelligences

LinguisticLogical-mathematicalMusicalSpatialBodily-kinesthetic Intrapersonal InterpersonalNaturalist

Criticism of Gardner’s Theory?

criticized for extending the definition of

intelligence to an overly broad range

of talents

Is Intelligence One General Ability or Several Specific Abilities?

Theories of Multiple Intelligences

Is Intelligence One General Ability or Several Specific Abilities?

Theories of Multiple IntelligencesSternberg’s Three Intelligences

Analytical (academic problem-solving intelligence

Creating intelligencePractical intelligenceThe Sternberg-Wagner test measures writing skills, skill in motivating others, and ability to effectively delegate tasks. This test measures which of the intelligences described by Sternberg's triarchic theory of intelligence?

Comparing Theories of Intelligencepage 528

Obj. 3: What makes up emotional intelligence?EmotionalintelligencePerceive emotionsUnderstand emotionsManage emotionsUse emotions for

adaptive or creative thinking

Is Intelligence Neurologically Measurable?Brain Size and Complexity

Brain size studies .33

Brain complexity studies Neural plasticity More synapses Gray matter versus

white matter

Is Intelligence Neurologically Measurable?Brain Function

Perceptual speed faster cognitive processing may allow for more

information to be acquired

Neurological speed

Assessing Intelligence

Objectives 5-8 pages 532-544

Who attempted to assess intellectual strengths by

measuring muscular power, sensory acuity, and body

proportions?

Objective 5:When & why were intelligence tests created?

Francis Galton’s intelligence testingReaction timeSensory acuityMuscular powerBody proportions

Nature vs. Nurture

Modern Intelligence Testing Movement

Alfred Binet Minimize bias of teacher in indentifying French school children in

need of assistance

Mental ageLevel of performance typically associated w/

chronological ageGeneral capacity that can manifest itself many

ways

Test DOES NOT measure inborn intelligence…single practical purpose

The Innate IQ

Stanford-Binet TestLewis Terman

adapted test to American children (and adults)

Intelligence quotient (IQ)IQ = (mental age/chronological age) X 100IQ of 100 is considered average

Today’s IQ tests compute performance on test relative to average performance of others of same age

William Stern

Eugenics Measuring human traits and using the

results to encourage only smart & fit people to reproduce.

With Terman’s help, the US evaluated new immigrants & WWI recruits Some felt test “proved” inferior intelligence of

people of non-Anglo-Saxon heritage

this belief led to what laws in the 1920’s?

Simon & Binet = concept of mental age

William Stern = formula for IQ

Lewis Terman = used formula on his Standford-Binet test

Modern Tests of Mental AbilitiesAchievement testsAptitude tests

Modern Tests of Mental Abilities

Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) the WAIS is the most widely

used intelligence test; contains verbal and performance (nonverbal) subtests

Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC)

Wechler Adult Intelligence Scale

Principles of Test ConstructionStandardization

Standardization a person's test performance can be compared with

that of a representative pretested group

Normal curve

restandardize

Normal Curve

Principles of Test ConstructionStandardization

Flynn effect

Principles of Test ConstructionStandardization

Flynn effect

Principles of Test Construction

ReliabilityScores correlateTest-retest reliabilitySplit-half reliability

Researchers assess the correlation between scores obtained on two halves of a single test in order to measure the ________ of a test.

Principles of Test ConstructionValidity

ValidityContent validity

the extent to which a test samples the behavior that is of interest.

CriterionPredictive validity

the success with which a test predicts the behavior it is designed to predict

assessed by computing the correlation between test scores and the criterion behavior (also called criterion-related validity

College Board AP Exams

The Dynamics of Intelligence

Stability or Change?How stable are intelligence scores over the lifespan?

Intelligence testing through life

Infants who

habituate

sooner to a

picture…

+.66Consistency of

scores increases w/

age

Extremes of IntelligenceThe Low Extreme

Intellectual disabilityMental retardation70 or below – 1%Down syndrome

21st chromosomeMainstreamed

Classifications of Intellectual DisabilityLevel Approximate

Intelligence Scores

Adaptation to Demands of Life

Mild 50-70 May learn academic skills up to sixth-grade level. Adults may with assistance, achieve self-supporting social and vocational skills

Moderate 35-50 May progress to second-grade level academically. Adults may contribute to their own support by laboring in sheltered workshops

Severe 20-35 May learn to talk and to perform simple tasks under close supervision but are generally unable to profit from vocational training

Profound Below 25 Require constant aid and supervision

Extremes of IntelligenceThe High Extreme

Terman’s study of gifted 1921 most thrive

Gifted? tracking by aptitude = self-fulfilling prophecy

Genetic and Environmental Influences on Intelligence

genotype vs. phenotype

inherited instructions within one’s genetic code

composite of an organism’s observable characteristics or

traits

Twin & Adoption Studies

Identical twin studies1. 50% intelligence test score variations can be attributed to

genetic variation

2. similar brain scans

3. Polygenetic

Adoptive children studies1. fraternal twins score more alike than other siblings

2. genetic influences become more apparent as we age

environment

compare adopted children with biological parents as well as

adoptive parents

Heritability

Heritability

Heritability

Heritability

Correlated Scores

Correlated Scores

Heritability NEVER pertains to an individual

only to the VARIATION – why people differ

when environments varies widely, environmental differences become more predictive trait differences (g score)

if the environment is exactly the same, heritability would be 100% - variation would have to be due to genetics.

Environmental InfluencesEarly environmental influences

Tutored human enrichmentamong the poor, environmental conditions can

override genetic differences

Targeted trainingspecific abilities…music

Schooling & intelligenceProject Head Start

growth mindset vs. fixed mindset

Hunt

performance orientation – give up when do poorly on tests

Group Differences in Intelligence Test ScoresGender Similarities and Differences

SpellingVerbal abilityNonverbal memorySensationEmotion-detecting abilityMath and spatial aptitudes

W

W

W

W

W

W = computationM= problem solving

M

evolutionary

Group Differences in Intelligence Test ScoresEthnic Similarities and Differences

group differences help little w/ judging individuals

group differences could be entirely environmental

individual genetic differences w/in a race

are much greater than differences

between races

*page 553*

The Question of BiasTwo meanings of bias

Popular senseScientific sense

validity

Test-taker’s expectationsStereotype threat (Spencer)

In Closing…1. Who might profit from early intervention2. Be alert to misuse of results3. Result on tests are important, but only one aspect of

personal competence

“Almost all the joyful things of life are outside the measure of IQ

tests.”--Madeleine L’Engle

The End

Intelligence Test= a method of assessing an individual's mental

aptitudes and comparing them with those of others, using numerical scores.

Intelligence= mental quality consisting of the ability to learn

from experience, solve problems, and use knowledge to adapt to new situations.

General Intelligence (g)= a general intelligence factor that, according to

Spearman and others, underlies specific mental abilities and is therefore measured by every task on an intelligence test.

Factor Analysis= a statistical procedure that identifies clusters

of related items (called factors) on a test; used to identify difference dimensions of performance that underlie a person’s total score.

Savant Syndrome= a condition in which a person otherwise

limited in mental ability has an exceptional specific skill, such as in computation or drawing.

Emotional Intelligence= the ability to perceive, understand, manage,

and use emotions.

Mental Age= a measure of intelligence test performance

devised by Binet; the chronological age that most typically corresponds to a given level of performance. Thus, a child who does as well as the average 8-year-old is said to have a mental age of 8.

Stanford-Binet= the widely used American revision (by Terman

at Stanford University) of Binet’s original intelligence test.

Intelligence Quotient (IQ)= defined originally as the ratio of mental age

(ma) to chronological age (ca) multiplied by 100 (thus, IQ=ma/ca X 100). On contemporary intelligence tests, the average performance for a given age is assigned a score of 100.

Achievement Tests= tests designed to assess what a person has

learned.

Aptitude Tests= tests designed to predict a person’s future

performance; aptitude is the capacity to learn.

Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS)= the WAIS is the most widely used intelligence

test; contains verbal and performance (nonverbal) subtests.

Standardization= defining meaningful scores by comparison

with the performance of a pretested group.

Normal Curve= a symmetrical, bell-shaped curve that

describes the distribution of many physical and psychological attributes. Most scores fall near the average, and fewer and fewer scores lie near the extremes.

Reliability= the extent to which a test yields consistent

results, as assessed by the consistency of scores on two halves of the test, or on retesting.

Validity= the extent to which a test measures or

predicts what it is supposed to.

Content Validity= the extent to which a test samples the

behavior that is of interest.

Predictive Validity= the success with which a test predicts the

behavior it is designed to predict; it is assessed by computing the correlation between test scores and the criterion behavior (also called criterion-related validity).

Intellectual Disability= (formerly referred to as mental retardation) a

condition of limited mental ability, indicated by an intelligence score of 70 or below and difficulty in adapting to the demands of life; varies from mild to profound.

Down Syndrome= a condition of intellectual disability and

associated physical disorders caused by an extra copy of chromosome 21.

Stereotype Threat= a self-confirming concern that one will be

evaluated based on a negative stereotype.