Intelligence
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Intelligence
Creativity
Psychometrics: tests & measurements
Cognitive approach
The Psychometric Approach
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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?
Does “g” exist?
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One of the longest-running debates in
psychology:
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global intelligence, a general ability
specific abilities
…..More a matter of emphasis
“Intelligence is what intelligence tests measure”
Edward Boring
Psychometric approach cont.
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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
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Alfred Binet:
1904
Mental Age
Theodore Simon
Lewis Terman:
1916
Stanford IQ
Divided child’s mental age by the
child’s chronological age to yield an
Intelligence Quotient (IQ)
All average children, regardless of age,
would have an IQ of 100
Binet Test comes to America
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Lewis Terman revised Binet’s 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 …..”
IQ tests cont.
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Today’s tests based on norms rather than
MA
Average is still set at 100
SD usually 15
2/3 score between 85 and 115
New uses in America
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Binet thought the tests could be useful for
identifying children with learning problems--not
to rank normal children
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In America, the original purpose was lost
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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?
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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
Intelligence, IQ, Creativity 1
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.
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.
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.
Intelligence, IQ, Creativity 3
4.
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.
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.
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.
Intelligence, IQ & Creativity
7. If you don’t 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.
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.
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
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.
Intelligence & Creativity
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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.
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.
Intelligence Testing & Creativity
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"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.
Intelligence Testing/Creativity 3
6. If we didn’t have the concept
"intelligence", we would probably
invent something like it.
Cognitive abilities, analytical
reasoning abilities, scholastic aptitude,
etc., are all euphemisms.
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
don’t have the resources.
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).
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.
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.
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.
Correlations in IQ
Henderson, 1982
Relationship
pairs
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Individual with self:
MZ twins
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MZ apart
DZ twins
Siblings
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Sibs apart
r
.87
.86
# of
456
1417
.75
.62
.41
1329
5350
.21
203
Creativity
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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
Creativity cont.
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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--don’t believe most of the
legends
How creativity has been studied
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Societies that foster it
Biographies of the very creative
Different areas--science, literature, inventions
Development in children
Psychology of the person
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Cognitive processes involved
Personality
Tests
Creativity cont.
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Creative people work very hard. 70 hrs per wk
on the average.
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After IQ of about 125, increases in IQ don’t add
to creativity.
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Divergent thinking example: How many uses can
you think of for a brick?
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Overall there is no relation with mental illness
although there are exceptions
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 domaingenerality (r = .37 across domains)
• Difference between creative potential and creative
performance
Creativity 2
Six Personal Resources
1. Intelligence- insightful, analytical,
ability to sell one’s 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
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, taskfocused
6. Environmental context
Divergent thinking
Risk-aversion (low tolerance for failure)
Creativity
Stages in the Creative Process
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Preparation
Incubation/frustration
Illumination/Inspiration/Insight
Verification/hypothesis testing
Communication of results