UNIT 11 – TESTING AND INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES

1. UNIT 11 – TESTING AND INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES

2. Introduction Quiz • People with higher IQs have longer life spans • Exceptionally creative architects, scientists, mathematicians and engineers usually score no higher on intelligence tests than do their less creative peers • Highly educated people die with more synapses than their less-educated peers • There is a slight positive correlation between brain size and intelligence scores

3. Introduction Quiz • The concern with individual differences in intelligence is strictly a twentieth-century American phenomenon • Highly educated people die with more synapses than their less-educated peers • There is a slight positive correlation between brain size and intelligence scores • The concern with individual differences in intelligence is strictly a twentieth-century American phenomenon

4. Introduction Quiz • Today’s Americans score higher on IQ tests than Americans did in the 1930s • How quickly 2-to-7 month-old babies become bored with a picture is one indicator of later intelligence • Among the mentally retarded, males outnumber females by 50 percent • As adopted children grow older, their intelligence scores become more similar to those of their biological parents than to those of their adoptive parents.

5. Introduction Quiz • People with higher IQs have longer life spans • True • Exceptionally creative architects, scientists, mathematicians and engineers usually score no higher on intelligence tests than do their less creative peers • True • Highly educated people die with more synapses than their less-educated peers • True • There is a slight positive correlation between brain size and intelligence scores • True

6. Introduction Quiz • The concern with individual differences in intelligence is strictly a twentieth-century American phenomenon • False • Highly educated people die with more synapses than their less-educated peers • True • There is a slight positive correlation between brain size and intelligence scores • True • The concern with individual differences in intelligence is strictly a twentieth-century American phenomenon • False

7. Introduction Quiz • Today’s Americans score higher on IQ tests than Americans did in the 1930s • True • How quickly 2-to-7 month-old babies become bored with a picture is one indicator of later intelligence • True • Among the mentally retarded, males outnumber females by 50 percent • True • As adopted children grow older, their intelligence scores become more similar to those of their biological parents than to those of their adoptive parents. • True

9. Intelligence Introduction • In your group, create two separate lists that include “distinctively characteristic” behaviors for each of the following groups… • INTELLIGENT people • UNINTELLIGENT people • Each list should include a minimum of 8 behaviors…

10. Intelligence Introduction • Now, walk around the room & look at the ideas of your classmates… • For each column, both INTELLIGENT & UNINTELLIGENT, you need to choose 1 items you agree with and 1 items you disagree with

11. 60.1 – Discuss the difficulty of defining intelligence. • What is intelligence? What makes one person seemingly more intelligence than another? Is intelligence what you know, or how well you perform in school. Psychologists often disagree on how to define intelligence; some believe that intelligence can take numerous forms, while others believe in a single intelligence. For the most popular views of intelligence, the definition lies somewhere in between. A simplified definition of intelligence is the cognitive abilities (thinking, reasoning, and problem solving) of a person based on his or her experiences. • Intelligence: the ability to learn from experience, solve problems, and use our knowledge to adapt to new situations (in research studies, intelligence is whatever the intelligence test measures, which has tended to be “school smarts”).

12. 60.2 – Present arguments for and against considering intelligence as one general mental ability. • Despite general agreement about the nature of intelligence, two controversies remain… • Is intelligence a single overall ability, or is it several specific abilities? • With modern neuroscience techniques, can we locate and measure intelligence within the brain? • Since mental abilities are incredibly diverse, is it justifiable to label these abilities with only one word – intelligence..?

13. 60.2 – Present arguments for and against considering intelligence as one general mental ability. Theories of Intelligence • Psychologists have devised varying techniques in an attempt to decipher the mystery surrounding intelligence. Many psychologists believe that in order to define intelligence, they must be able to measure it. Sir Francis Galton is often mentioned as the father of psychometrics, the measurement of knowledge and ability by using defined tests. Galton believed that intelligence was based on genetics. Therefore, if your parents were intelligent, you would most likely be intelligent as well. Galton studied the history of a select number of people and their relatives; this study led him to conclude that intelligence is the result of heredity. Galton’s work inspired a movement referred to as “eugenics” (well-born), which embraced this core tenet (that intelligence is inherited, or the result of nature). His research laid the groundwork for studying intelligence, but it was not without its critics. The main criticism of Galton’s work centers on the fact that he studied only males. While this appears to be sexist in nature, one must take into consideration the time period in which Galton was working.

14. 60.2 – Present arguments for and against considering intelligence as one general mental ability. Theories of Intelligence • Charles Spearman (1863-1945) • Viewed intelligence as two different abilities • General Intelligence, or g factor • The ability to reason and solve problems • Specific Intelligence, or s factor • The ability to excel in certain areas • 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

15. 60.3 – Compare Gardner’s and Sternberg’s theories of intelligence. Theories of Intelligence • L.L. Thurstone(1887-1955) • Opponent of Spearman and the g factor • Believed intelligence was composed of seven primary mental abilities • Word fluency • Verbal comprehension • Spatial ability • Perceptual speed • Numerical ability • Inductive reasoning • Memory

16. 60.3 – Compare Gardner’s and Sternberg’s theories of intelligence. Theories of Intelligence • Howard Gardner (1943-present) • Believes that intelligence is multiple abilities that come in a package • We do not have AN intelligence, but rather MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES • Studied people with diminished and/or exceptional abilities, especially those with Savant Syndrome • Savant Syndrome • A condition in which a person otherwise limited in mental abilities has an exceptional specific skill, such as in computation or drawing • Often score low on intelligence tests, but are otherwise brilliant • 4 out of 5 people with this disorder are male and also have autism

17. 60.3 – Compare Gardner’s and Sternberg’s theories of intelligence. Theories of Intelligence

18. 60.3 – Compare Gardner’s and Sternberg’s theories of intelligence. Theories of Intelligence

19. 60.3 – Compare Gardner’s and Sternberg’s theories of intelligence. Theories of Intelligence • Robert Sternberg (1949-present) • Generally agrees with Gardner; however, Sternberg believes that intelligence has three basic components • Analytical Intelligence • Creative Intelligence • Practical Intelligence • Most commonly accepted theory of intelligence

20. 60.3 – Compare Gardner’s and Sternberg’s theories of intelligence. Theories of Intelligence • Robert Sternberg (1949-present) • Analytical Intelligence (“book smarts”) • The ability to break problems down into component parts, or analysis, for problem solving • Creative Intelligence • The ability to deal with new & different concepts and to come up with new ways of solving problems • Practical Intelligence (“street smarts”) • The ability to use information to get along in life and become successful

21. 60.4 – Describe the four components of emotional intelligence. Emotional Intelligence • The ability to perceive, understand, manage and use emotions • Emotionally intelligent people tend to be very self-aware • The test for emotional intelligence measures overall emotional intelligence and its four components • Perception of emotion • Understanding of emotion • Management of emotion • Usage of emotion

22. 60.4 – Describe the four components of emotional intelligence. • Complete the emotional intelligence questionnaire to see your level of emotional intelligence

23. 60.4 – Describe the four components of emotional intelligence. Emotional Intelligence

24. 60.4 – Describe the four components of emotional intelligence. Emotional Intelligence • Criticisms • Howard Gardner & others criticize the idea of emotional intelligence and question whether we stretch this idea of intelligence too far when we apply it to our emotions • Sex differences draw into question whether the EQ test is sex biased

25. 60.5 – Describe the relationship between intelligence and brain anatomy. Brain Size and Complexity • Einstein’s brain was average in size, but his parietal lobes lower region was 15% larger than average (center for mathematical and spatial information). • Highly educated people die with 17% more synapses. • Higher intelligence scores are linked with more gray matter (neural cell bodies) in areas involved in memory, attention, and language.

26. 60.6 – Describe the relationship between intelligence and neural processing speed. Brain Function • People who score high on intelligence tests tend to have agile brains and score high in speed of perception and speed of neural processing.