Theories of Intelligence
Cattell-Horn-Carroll (CHC)
 One of the best psychometric theories
 Focus of the theory is on cognitive abilities and
individual differences in these abilities
 This theory stemmed from the research of Spearman
who proposed that underlying all types of cognitive
ability was a factor called the general factor (g)
 In addition to g, there are specific factors called “s”
factors that reflect more unique abilities
 These two factors led to the theory being known as a
“two-factor theory of intelligence”
CHC
 Ray Cattell, student of Spearman, further proposed
that the general factor (g) be divided into two
categories:
Fluid Intelligence (Gf)
 Crystallised Intelligence (Gc)
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 Horn and Carroll, students of Cattell made further
modifications and what was originally Spearman’s
theory became the Cattell-Horn-Carroll Theory of
Intelligence
CHC
 So what did Horn and Carroll add to the theory?
 Horn and Carroll further defined fluid and crystallised
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intelligence
They created three levels of intelligence and the theory
became known as a “three stratum model”.
The highest level (Stratum I) represents the general
factor and is most important to intelligence
The second level (Stratum II) includes 8 abilities
including fluid and crystallised intelligence
The third level (Stratum III) refers to abilities such as
reaction time, visual memory, spatial scanning, and
sound discrimination. There are actually 70 in total.
Fluid Intelligence
 Refers to a range of mental abilities such as memory,
reasoning, logic, and recognition.
 Relied on to solve novel problems
 Largely inherited so independent of education
 Declines with age
Crystallised Intelligence
 Refers to specific information and skills obtained
through schooling i.e. Reading level, vocabulary,
knowledge of times tables, etc
 Linked to fluid intelligence as a person with a high
level of fluid intelligence will find it easier to learn
 Increases across the lifespan
Evaluation of CHC
 Most scientifically supported as the theory is based
on lots of data
 Some suggestion that Stratum II should contain
motor abilities as well
 Stratum IIIz is still being researched and updated
today so exact number of abilities is undefined
Sternberg’s Triarchic Theory
 Robert Sternberg defined intelligence as “your skill
in achieving whatever it is you want to attain in your
life within your socio-cultural context by capitalising
on your strengths and compensating for your
weaknesses”
 Sternberg focussed on people’ s ability to achieve
what they wanted in life and not how they went at
school
 Sternberg divided intelligence into three components
and claimed that intelligence behaviour occurred
when these three components were in balance
Sternberg’s Three Intelligences
Sternberg’s Three Intelligences
 Analytic Intelligence- becoming aware of and
analysing information
 Creativity- able to present new ideas and follow them
through
 Practical Intelligence- able to adapt to the
environment
 Successful Intelligence: The ability to achieve success
in life as defined by a person’s own standards within
their own social context.
Evaluation of Sternberg’s Theory
 Does not limit intelligence to just cognitive skills
 But empirical evidence for the theory is lacking
Gardner’s Multiple Intelligence Theory
 Believed that people used different mental languages
for their thinking
 Proposed that people have different intelligences.
Further proposed that every person has all types of
intelligence but to varying degrees. Everyone has
their strengths and weaknesses.
 Gardiner identified the different types of
intelligences using certain criteria:
Criteria to Support Gardner’s Theory of Distinct
Intelligences
 Criteria 1: The existence of exceptional individuals
 Criteria 2: People often may experience disability in
one intelligence but excel in another area
 Criteria 3: Different skills or abilities (intelligences)
develop at different times
 Criteria 4: Experimental support
 From these criteria, Gardner has identified nine
intelligences:
Gardner’s Nine Intelligences
Evaluating Gardner’s Approach
 Stressed that intelligence was not just a single factor;
people have different intelligences. This appeals to many
who feel that an IQ score or the idea of general
intelligence (g) is too narrow.
 Research however does support the idea of a general
intelligence factor.
 There is little evidence for Gardner’s theory. He
suggested that different types of intelligence reside in
different parts of the brain. To date there is not evidence
of this.
 Currently there are 9 intelligences but originally only 7.
Will Garner keep adding more? When does it stop? Some
have argued that some “intelligences” are not actually
intelligences at all but just skills.
Emotional Intelligence
 Developed by Peter Salovey and John Mayer in 1997
 They defined Emotional Intelligence as “the ability to
monitor one’s own and other’s feelings and emotions, to
discriminate among them and to use this information to
guide one’s thinking and actions”
 They linked success in life to the concept of emotional
intelligence suggesting that emotional intelligence is a
more powerful predictor of success in life and therefore
more relevant than traditional measures of intelligence.
 Links in with the Interpersonal and Intrapersonal
Intelligences of Gardner’s MI.
Emotional Intelligence (EI)
 The most popular model of EI is the ability based
model. This model emphasises the importance of
emotions in guiding us through social interaction.
 In the ability based model, there are four abilities:
Ability based model of EI
Self Perception: the ability to perceive, appraise
and express emotion accurately
2. Thought facilitation: the ability to communicate
feelings or to use emotion with other cognitive
processes
3. Social Understanding: the ability to understand
emotions
4. Relationship Management: the ability to regulate
your own and other’s emotions
 The abilities above develop in sequence (1 to 4)
from childhood
1.
Testing EI
 EI is testing using various questionnaires that
usually ask participants to rate statements on a
Likert Scale
 While we can assume that being able to understand
and regulate emotion does have an impact on your
life, is there any empirical evidence?
 So far correlations has been found between EI and
positive family and intimate relationships, academic
performance, relationships are work and overall
psychological well-being.
Evaluation of EI
 EI is not clearly defined; the definition keeps
changing
 Is EI actually intelligence or is it more related to
personality
 The measure used to test EI are based on knowledge
(Likert scale) and not actual ability
Intelligence: Nature or Nurture?
 Historically it was thought that intelligence was
entirely genetic. Several psychologists had noticed
that family members obtained similar intelligence
scores.
 What they neglected to realise however was that
families share not only genes but their environment.
 Therefore, psychologists used twin studies to
investigate the role of nature and nurture in
intelligence,
Nature vs. Nurture
 The intelligence of monozygotic (identical) and
dizygotic (non-identical) twins were compared. It
would be suggested that if the IQ scores of
monozygotic twins were more similar to dizygotic
twins then intelligence is more genetic than
environmental.
 What did the studies find? The studies found that the
intelligence levels of monozygotic twins were
significantly more similar than dizygotic twins. This
suggested that intelligence is largely inherited.
Nature vs. Nurture
 While the studies suggest there is a large genetic
component to intelligence, the environment does
play a role also. Support for this has been found
when analysing the intelligences of adopted children
and normal siblings. Any group raised together have
been found to have more similar intelligences than
when they are raised apart.
 Also, children raised in poverty tended to have lower
intelligence levels. When removed from this
environment, they experienced gains.
Interaction between Genetics and the
Environment
 It appears that genetics sets the upper and lower
limits to our intelligence. This range is known as the
reaction range. This reaction range can vary
between 10 – 25 IQ points.
 The environment then determines where within that
range a person is placed.