Module 8 - Intelligence and Academic Achievement Flashcards
(23 cards)
define intelligence
the ability to acquire, apply, and adapt ones knowledge and skills to meet the demands of one’s environment
define general intellience
(g): single board mental capacity, ability to think and learn in every context
- related too: performance on many distinct cognitive test, higher grade, IQ test, general knowledge, etc.
define crystallized intelligence
working with prior knowledge, drawing association with known concepts, experience-dependent, long-term memory and verbal ability
- answering math problems
define fluid intelligence
thinking on the spot, new problems and content, does not rely on experience, working memory, what you can hold in your mind in the moment and how you work with it
- understanding relations of concepts not previously seen
what is the support with fluid and crystallized intelligence?
fluid:
- ages from 20 to 90 are presented with tasks of reasoning and perceptual speed
- fluid intelligence is shown to be the most at early 20 and then will decline from there
crystallized:
- shown to be increasing with age, as you have more experience
- tasks with vocabulary
what are the 7 kinds of intelligence/primary mental abilities?
crystallized: word fluency, verbal meaning
fluid: reasoning, spatial reasoning, numbering, toe memory and perceptual speed
- don’t memorize, more just understand what the reasoning behind his reasoning to create the 7 categories
define the unified theory
- John B. Carroll
Three-stratum theory: a hierarchical model of intelligence - general intelligence at the top
eight correlated domains of intelligence in the middle - many specific cognitive processes at the bottom level
- able to look at each level level to answer questions when it comes to learning with kids
- there is not a singular way that we should look at intelligence
what are the alternative theories of intelligence?
Gardner’s theory/multiple intelligence: three standard IQ tests (linguistic, logical-math, spatial), and added 5 additional forms (musical, kinesthetic, interpersonal, intrapersonal, naturalistic)
- not much empirical support this as a way of describing intelligence
Sternberg’s theory/successful intelligence: intelligence should describe one’s ability to be successful in the things they chose to do, 3 categories (analytical,c creative, and practical-contextual abilities)
- g is able to predict real-world success just fine
what are the origins of studying intelligence?
1940: saw that children were struggling, the government was worried that teachers’ reports were bias
- Alfred Binet: saw intelligence as involving high-level thinking and reasoning, developed the Binet-Simon intelligence Test (huge success in predicting grades)
why do we measure intelligence?
uses:
- predicting developmental outcomes and needs
- more objective/less subjective than other measures
things to keep in mind:
- tests cannot capture intelligence across all domains/contexts (only score you on what is asked)
- an approximation of one’s capacities
- can be culturally biased
- ethical considerations (intelligence does not equal worth)
define the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC)
- produces a total score (g) and 5 subscores (verbal comprehension, visual-spatial, working memory, fluid reasoning, processing speed indexes)
- used for children 6 and up
define verbal comprehension index
ability to recall, understand, think about, and express stored verbal information (words, facts, concepts) –> crystallized
- similarity test
- vocabulary test
define visual-spatial processing index
ability to visualize and reason about spatial relationships, to think about things in terms of parts and wholes, and to coordinate your actions accordingly
- block design: give design and blocks, ask kids to move the blocks to create the design
- visual puzzle: given shape, selecting pieces that would be needed to reconstruct the shape
define working memory index
ability to encode, hold, and manipulate information in your consciousness
- digit span forward task: rehearsing of numbers to keep in it your head
- digit span backwards: repeating it the first way and then backwards
- digit span sequencing: repeating it in a difference way, even harder manipulation
define fluid reasoning index
identify underlying relationships and use reasoning to infer/apply rules
- picture concepts tasks: grouping items based on shared characteristics
- matrix reasoning: selecting items that will complete the pattern
define processing speed
how quickly and accurately you can identify things, make decisions, and implement actions
- coding: apply symbols to an array of shapes
- symbol search: searching for one or more targets a string in of symbols
define intelligence quotient (IQ)
quantitative measure of a child’s intelligence relative to other children of the same age
- relating to general intelligence
- average is 100 and the standard deviation is 15
- strong, stable relation across time
- not unchangeable
what does IQ predict?
- school success: what it was designed for, doesn’t factor in self-discipline and motivation
- occupational success: promotions, wages, performance, doesn’t factor in social intelligence, parental modelling
how can genetics contribute to IQ?
- Genetic influence increases with age
- by age 16, IQ is more similar to bio parents than adopted parents (showing how much genetics is stronger than environment)
- there is no single intelligence gene: influenced by countless genes
how do genes influence a child’s environment?
passive effects: biological parents and child have common genotype, environment will reflect parent’s own genotype
evocative: child’s genotype/phenotype influences the behaviour a child with elicit from those around them
active: child’s genotype affects the environment they choose to engage in
how does the home environment affect IQ?
- parenting and home environment
- Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment (HOME); physical safety, social support, intellectual stimulation
- HOME score is correlated with IQ
- correlation does not mean causation
- shared vs. non-shared environment (siblings can have very different life experiences)
- as social economical status increase, the influence of home environment decreases
- better support = better IQ growth
how does school affect IQ?
- IQ scores jump between children of teh same age in different groups
- effect of schooling, not age
- IQ can increase during the school year, kids with low SES, it can lower during the summer but kids with high SES can create more growth
how does poverty affect IQ?
- The effect of poverty is much greater on IQ than on income
- nutrition, not having enough to eat
- learning resources
- increased stressor from parents to provide support to children
- interventions are very important
