Theories of intelligence

Transcript

RyanPicture a family reunion. Aunt Grace wins every trivia game, every year. Cousin Theo hates trivia, but when the van breaks down on the drive home, he's the one who rigs a fix from a belt and some zip ties. And twelve-year-old Nia figures out a brand-new board game faster than any of the adults.

SoheeSo who's the smart one?

RyanWelcome to EPPP Prep, the podcast. I'm Ryan.

SoheeI'm Sohee. And that question, who's the smart one, is really the question of today's episode. Is intelligence one thing, or many? Psychologists have answered it in very different ways, and keeping straight who said what is half the work.

RyanThe OpenStax psychology textbook notes that the definition of intelligence has been modified many times since psychology began. Let's start at the one-thing end.

SoheeBritish psychologist Charles Spearman believed intelligence consisted of one general factor, called g, which could be measured and compared across individuals. He focused on what different intellectual abilities have in common, and de-emphasized what makes each unique. And the textbook notes that long before modern psychology, philosophers like Aristotle held a similar view.

RyanThen Raymond Cattell, in the 1940s, divided general intelligence into two components. Crystallized intelligence is acquired knowledge and the ability to retrieve it. When you learn, remember and recall information, that's crystallized.

SoheeFluid intelligence is the ability to see complex relationships and solve problems. The textbook's example: finding your way home after a road construction detour sends you onto an unfamiliar route.

RyanSo Aunt Grace and her trivia? Crystallized. Nia, cracking a game she's never seen? Fluid. Fluid helps with complex, abstract challenges. Crystallized helps with concrete, straightforward problems.

SoheeAnd they age differently. From the lifespan chapter: crystallized intelligence tends to hold steady as we age, and may even improve. In late adulthood, fluid intelligence, information processing, reasoning and memory, begins to decline. Those processes become slower.

RyanPause and think. A seventy-five-year-old retired history teacher is still unbeatable on vocabulary and historical facts, but is slower than she used to be on unfamiliar logic puzzles. How do you explain the pattern?

SoheeCrystallized intelligence, her stored knowledge, has held steady. Fluid intelligence, novel reasoning and processing speed, has slowed. That's the typical late-adulthood pattern the textbook describes.

RyanNow, the theory the textbook calls the most comprehensive to date: the Cattell-Horn-Carroll theory of cognitive abilities, often called C H C.

SoheeIt's a hierarchy. General intelligence at the top. Broad abilities in the middle, like fluid reasoning, short-term memory and processing speed. And narrow, specific abilities at the bottom. Short-term memory, for example, breaks down into memory span and working memory capacity.

RyanAnd one detail people miss. In C H C, the narrow abilities are the only ones that can be directly measured. The broader levels are integrated with them.

SoheeSo C H C is a way of having it both ways. There's a g at the top, and many abilities underneath.

RyanThere's also a link to our cognition episodes. Adele Diamond's review of executive functions describes fluid intelligence as the ability to reason, problem solve, and see patterns or relations. She calls it synonymous with the reasoning and problem-solving parts of executive function.

SoheeAnd measures of fluid intelligence, like Raven's Matrices, are highly correlated with independent measures of executive function.

RyanNow to theories that define intelligence in more practical terms. Robert Sternberg's triarchic theory says intelligence has three parts: practical, creative and analytical.

SoheePractical intelligence is sometimes compared to street smarts. Finding solutions that work in everyday life by applying knowledge from experience. And it appears separate from the traditional understanding of I Q. Someone high in practical intelligence may or may not score high in the other two.

RyanAnalytical intelligence is closely aligned with academic problem solving and computation. Sternberg says it shows in the ability to analyze, evaluate, judge, compare and contrast.

SoheeAnd creative intelligence is inventing or imagining a solution to a problem or situation. The textbook's example: the camper who figures out how to brew coffee for everyone after the group forgets the coffee pot.

RyanOr Cousin Theo with the zip ties. He's applying hands-on experience in a novel situation, so you could argue for practical or creative. Notice that ambiguity, and read each definition's exact wording.

SoheeThen Howard Gardner, a Harvard psychologist and former student of Erik Erikson. His multiple intelligences theory says each person has at least eight intelligences.

RyanLinguistic, logical-mathematical, musical, bodily kinesthetic, spatial, interpersonal, intrapersonal and naturalistic.

SoheeNow the critical piece, the part that separates a strong answer from a weak one. Among cognitive psychologists, Gardner's theory has been heavily criticized for lacking empirical evidence. But educators continue to study and use it.

RyanWhy so popular? Gottfredson's explanation, quoted in the textbook: the idea that there are multiple independent intelligences suggests everyone can be smart in some way, which is understandably attractive in democratic societies.

SoheeGardner's interpersonal and intrapersonal intelligences are often combined into one: emotional intelligence. That's the ability to understand your own and others' emotions, show empathy, understand social relationships and cues, and regulate your emotions and respond in culturally appropriate ways.

RyanDaniel Goleman argued emotional intelligence is a better predictor of success than traditional intelligence. But it's been widely debated. Researchers point to inconsistencies in how it's defined, and question results on something so hard to measure and study empirically.

SoheeSo if a question asks about the research standing of multiple intelligences or emotional intelligence, the tempting wrong answer overstates the evidence. The careful answer acknowledges the criticism.

RyanPause and think. A school counselor says, every student is smart in their own way, which is why we teach to musical, bodily and naturalistic strengths. Whose theory is that, and what's the main critique?

SoheeGardner's multiple intelligences. The main critique, from cognitive psychologists, is that it lacks empirical evidence, even though educators find it appealing.

RyanCulture matters too. The textbook notes intelligence can mean different things in different cultures. On a small island where people fish for food, a skilled angler and boat repairer may be seen as intelligent. In Irish culture, a skilled storyteller.

SoheeAnd how well you relate to the values of another culture is called cultural intelligence, sometimes referred to as cultural competence.

RyanFinally, creativity: the ability to generate, create or discover new ideas, solutions and possibilities. The textbook calls it a vital form of intelligence that drives discovery in many fields, not just the arts.

SoheeAnd the textbook describes what very creative people often do. They have intense knowledge about something, work on it for years, look at novel solutions, seek out the advice and help of other experts, and take risks.

RyanWhich sounds a lot like good exam preparation, honestly. Deep knowledge, built over time, with help from others.

SoheeCreativity is often connected with divergent thinking, thinking outside the box to reach unique, multiple solutions. Convergent thinking is the opposite: providing a correct or well-established answer to a problem.

RyanSo a multiple-choice exam, with one keyed answer, rewards convergent thinking. Brainstorming every possible use for a brick? That's divergent.

SoheeBefore we recap, a quick-fire round, because matching the phrase to the theorist is half the battle here. I'll say a phrase, you name the person. Ready? One general factor.

RyanSpearman, and his g.

SoheeAcquired knowledge versus seeing complex relationships.

RyanCattell. Crystallized and fluid.

SoheeStreet smarts, plus analytical and creative.

RyanSternberg's triarchic theory.

SoheeNaturalistic and bodily kinesthetic.

RyanGardner's multiple intelligences.

SoheeA better predictor of success than I Q.

RyanGoleman's claim for emotional intelligence, a claim researchers still debate.

SoheeGeneral, broad and narrow abilities, with only the narrow ones directly measured.

RyanCattell-Horn-Carroll. If you got most of those, that's real progress. If not, replay this round tomorrow. Spacing it out helps it stick.

SoheeLet's recap. Spearman: one general factor, g. Cattell: crystallized, acquired knowledge, and fluid, novel problem solving. Crystallized holds steady with age. Fluid declines in late adulthood.

RyanCattell-Horn-Carroll: the most comprehensive model, a hierarchy of general, broad and narrow abilities, where only narrow abilities are directly measured.

SoheeSternberg: practical, analytical and creative. Gardner: at least eight intelligences, popular with educators but criticized for lacking empirical evidence.

RyanEmotional intelligence: understanding and regulating emotions, promoted by Goleman, debated by researchers. And creativity rests on divergent thinking.

SoheeAnd one more thought. Most of these theories describe many kinds of ability, not one single number. And a practice score is just a guide to what to review next. Keep going.

RyanNext time, how intelligence is measured. Until then, try a few practice questions. See you on EPPP Prep.

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