cognitive ability
the capacity to reason, remember,
understand, solve problems, and make
decisions
intelligence
those attributes that center around skill at
information processing, problem solving, and
adapting to new or changing environments
IQ test
a test designed to measure intelligence on an
objective, standardized scale
mental age
age corresponding to the average individual's
performance on an intelligence test
chronological age
age as measured in years from date of birth
intelligence quotient
an index of intelligence that reflects the
degree to which a person's score on an
intelligence test deviates from the average
score of others in the same age group
validity
the degree to which test scores are
interpreted correctly and used appropriately
content validity
the degree to which the content of a test is a
fair and representative sample of what the
test is supposed to measure
split half
ex. odds and evens, "splitting the test"
pygmalion effect
exceptional progress by a student as a result
of high teacher expectations for that student,
also expectancy effect
standardization
defining meaningful scores by comparison
with the performance of a pretested
standardization group
psychometric approach
a way of studying intelligence that
emphasizes analysis of the products of
intelligence, especially scores on intelligence
tests
LL Thurstone
found 7 independent primary mental abilities:
numerical ability, reasoning, verbal fluency,
spatial visualization, perceptual ability,
memory, and verbal comprehension
Raymond Cattell
agreed with Spearman, but his own factor
analyses suggested that there are two kinds
of g, which he labeled fluid and crystallized
fluid intelligence
the basic power of reasoning and problem
solving
crystallized intelligence
the specific knowledge gained as a result of
applying fluid intelligence
information processing approach
an approach to the study of intelligence
developed by Earl Hunt that focuses on
mental operations, such as attention and
memory, that underlie intelligent behavior
triarchic theory of intelligence
Robert Sternberg's theory that describes
intelligence as having analytic, creative, and
practical dimensions
multiple intelligences
8 semi-independent kinds of intelligence
postulated by Howard Gardner; linguistic,
logical-mathematical, spatial, musical, bodykinesthetic, intrapersonal, interpersonal,
naturalistic
cross sectional study
compares data collected at the same point in
time from people of different ages
longitudinal study
a group of people is repeatedly tested as they
grow older
creativity
the capacity to produce new, high-quality
ideas or products
divergent thinking
the ability to think along many alternative
paths to generate many different solutions to
a problem
convergent thinking
the ability to apply logic and knowledge to
narrow down the number of possible
solutions to a problem or perform some other
complex cognitive task
learning disability
people who show a significant discrepancy
between their measured intelligence and
their academic performance
dyslexia
find it difficult to understand the meaning of
what they read, or in sounding out and
identifying written words (trouble with
reading)
Project Head Start
a government-funded program that is
designed to provide children from lowincome families the opportunity to acquire
the skills and experiences important for
school success
culture fair tests
tests of intelligence that are designed to be
free of cultural bias