Myers PSYCHOLOGY

(7th Ed)

Chapter 11

Intelligence
James A. McCubbin, PhD
Clemson University
Worth Publishers

Origins of
Intelligence Testing
Intelligence Test
a method of
assessing an
individuals
mental aptitudes
and comparing
them to those of
others, using
numerical scores

Origins of
Intelligence Testing
Mental Age
a measure of intelligence test
performance devised by Binet
chronological age that most
typically corresponds to a given
level of performance
child who does as well as the
average 8-year-old is said to have
a mental age of 8

Origins of
Intelligence Testing
Stanford-Binet
the widely used American
revision of Binets original
intelligence test
revised by Terman at
Stanford University

Origins of
Intelligence Testing
Intelligence Quotient (IQ)
defined originally the ratio of
mental age (ma) to chronological
age (ca) multiplied by 100
IQ = ma/ca x 100)

on contemporary tests, the

average performance for a given
age is assigned a score of 100

What is Intelligence?
Intelligence
ability to learn from
experience, solve problems,
and use knowledge to adapt
to new situations

What is Intelligence?
Factor Analysis
statistical procedure that identifies clusters
of related items (called factors) on a test
used to identify different dimensions of
performance that underlie ones total score

General Intelligence (g)

factor that Spearman and others believed
underlies specific mental abilities
measured by every task on an intelligence
test

Are There Multiple

Intelligences?
Savant Syndrome
condition in which a person otherwise
limited in mental ability has an
exceptional specific skill
computation
drawing

Are There Multiple

Intelligences?
Social Intelligence
the know-how involved in
comprehending social situations
and managing oneself successfully

Emotional Intelligence
ability to perceive, express,
understand, and regulate emotions

Intelligence and
Creativity
Creativity
the ability to produce novel and
valuable ideas
expertise
imaginative thinking skills
venturesome personality
intrinsic motivation
creative environment

Brain Function and

Intelligence
People who can
perceive the
stimulus very
quickly tend to
score
somewhat
higher on
intelligence
tests

Stimulus

Mask

Question: Long side on left or right?

Assessing Intelligence
Aptitude Test
a test designed to predict a
persons future performance
aptitude is the capacity to learn

Achievement Test
a test designed to assess what a
person has learned

Assessing Intelligence
Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale
(WAIS)
most widely used intelligence test
subtests
verbal
performance (nonverbal)

Assessing Intelligence:
Sample Items from the WAIS
VERBAL

PERFORMANCE

General Information
Similarities
Arithmetic Reasoning
Vocabulary
Comprehension
Digit Span

Picture Completion
Picture Arrangement
Block Design
Object Assembly
Digit-Symbol Substitution

From Thorndike and Hagen, 1977

Assessing Intelligence
Standardization
defining meaningful scores by comparison
with the performance of a pretested
standardization group

Normal Curve
the 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

The Normal Curve

Getting Smarter?

Assessing Intelligence
Reliability
the extent to which a test yields
consistent results
assessed by consistency of scores on:
two halves of the test
alternate forms of the test
retesting

Validity
the extent to which a test measures or
predicts what it is supposed to

Assessing Intelligence
Content Validity
the extent to which a test samples
the behavior that is of interest
driving test that samples driving tasks

Criterion
behavior (such as college grades)
that a test (such as the SAT) is
designed to predict
the measure used in defining whether
the test has predictive validity

Assessing Intelligence
Predictive Validity
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

Assessing Intelligence
Football
linemens
success

10
9

Greater correlation
over broad range
of body weights

8
7
6
5
4

Little correlation within

restricted
range

3
2
1
0
180

250

290

Body weight in pounds

As the range
of data under
consideration
narrows, its
predictive
power
diminishes

The Dynamics of
Intelligence
Mental Retardation
a condition of limited mental ability
indicated by an intelligence score below 70
produces difficulty in adapting to the
demands of life
varies from mild to profound

Down Syndrome
retardation and associated physical
disorders caused by an extra chromosome
in ones genetic makeup

The Dynamics of
Intelligence

Genetic Influences
The most
genetically
similar
people
have the
most
similar
scores

Genetic Influences
Heritability
the proportion of variation among
individuals that we can attribute to
genes
variability depends on range of
populations and environments
studied

Genetic Influences

Environmental
Influences
The Schooling Effect

Group Differences
Group differences and environmental
Variation within group
impact
Variation within group

Seeds

Poor soil

Fertile soil

Difference within group

Group Differences
The Mental Rotation Test

Which two of the other circles contain a configuration of blocks

identical to the one in the circle at the left?

Standard

Responses

Group Differences
Stereotype Threat
A self-confirming concern that
one will be evaluated based on
a negative stereotype