My Brilliant Brain Susan PolgarChess ChampionIntelligenceChapter
My Brilliant Brain
• Susan Polgar,
Chess Champion
Intelligence
Chapter 10
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4VlGGM5WYZo
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95eYyyg1g5s
Psy 12000.003
1
2
What is Intelligence?
Conceptual Difficulties
Intelligence (in all cultures) is the ability to learn from experience, solve problems, and use our knowledge to adapt to new situations.
This is the conceptual definition.
Psychologists believe that intelligence is a concept and not a thing.
Unfortunately, it is treated like a thing…a real thing.
In research studies, intelligence is whatever the intelligence test measures. This tends to be “school smarts” and it tends to be culture-specific.
This is the operational definition.
When we think of intelligence as a trait (thing) we make an error called reification — viewing an abstract immaterial concept as if it were a concrete thing. 3
4
Controversies About Intelligence
Intelligence: Ability or Abilities?
Despite general agreement among psychologists about the nature of intelligence, at least three controversies remain:
Have you ever thought that because people’s mental abilities are so diverse, it may not be justifiable to label those abilities with only one word, intelligence? 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?
Do between group differences in IQ scores (and distributions around the mean for each group) reflect real group differences in intelligence or are they artifacts of the testing instrument and procedure? You may speculate that diverse abilities represent different kinds of intelligences. How can you test this idea? 5
6
1
General Intelligence
General Intelligence
The idea that general intelligence (g) exists comes from the work of Charles Spearman (1863-1945) who helped develop the factor analysis approach in statistics. Spearman proposed that general
• Susan Polgar,
Chess Champion
Intelligence
Chapter 10
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4VlGGM5WYZo
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95eYyyg1g5s
Psy 12000.003
1
2
What is Intelligence?
Conceptual Difficulties
Intelligence (in all cultures) is the ability to learn from experience, solve problems, and use our knowledge to adapt to new situations.
This is the conceptual definition.
Psychologists believe that intelligence is a concept and not a thing.
Unfortunately, it is treated like a thing…a real thing.
In research studies, intelligence is whatever the intelligence test measures. This tends to be “school smarts” and it tends to be culture-specific.
This is the operational definition.
When we think of intelligence as a trait (thing) we make an error called reification — viewing an abstract immaterial concept as if it were a concrete thing. 3
4
Controversies About Intelligence
Intelligence: Ability or Abilities?
Despite general agreement among psychologists about the nature of intelligence, at least three controversies remain:
Have you ever thought that because people’s mental abilities are so diverse, it may not be justifiable to label those abilities with only one word, intelligence? 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?
Do between group differences in IQ scores (and distributions around the mean for each group) reflect real group differences in intelligence or are they artifacts of the testing instrument and procedure? You may speculate that diverse abilities represent different kinds of intelligences. How can you test this idea? 5
6
1
General Intelligence
General Intelligence
The idea that general intelligence (g) exists comes from the work of Charles Spearman (1863-1945) who helped develop the factor analysis approach in statistics. Spearman proposed that general