Week 8 & 9

Question 1

What is intelligence?

Answer 1

involves the ability to reason, plan, solve problems, think abstractly, comprehend complex ideas, learn quickly and learn from experience. It is not merely book learning, a
narrow academic skill, or test-taking smarts. Rather it reflects a
broader and deeper capability for comprehending our surroundings—“catching on,” “making sense” of things, or “figuring out”
what to do.

Question 2

What is positive manifold?

Answer 2

General positive correlation across tasks

Question 3

What are factors?

Answer 3

subgroups that correlate i.e. reading and spelling correlate as do arithmetic and mathematics

Question 4

Who was Charles Spearman?

Answer 4

Statistician who discovered ‘g’ > the symbol for intelligence that underlies all cognitive ability or mental energy. For example, people with higher IQ had more ‘g’ available to them.

A measure of intelligence > the ‘g’ test

Question 5

Describe Guilford’s Model of Intelligence (1867)

Answer 5

Depicted as a cube, this model embraces 120 independent and separate factors. For example;

Operations > cognition, memory, convergent/divergent production, evaluation

Products > Units, classes, relations, systems, transformations, implications

Contents > figural, symbolic, semantic, behavioural

Might consist of an analogy question i.e. poetry is to prose as dance is to a) music b) walk c) sing d) talk

This translates to cognition > semantic > relations

Question 6

Why was Guilford’s (1967) Model of Intelligence discredited?

Answer 6

Didn’t explain a lot about intelligence per se, assumed many things were independent of each other when positive manifold has been proven to exist.

Question 7

Describe Thurston’s Primary Abilities Model

Answer 7

Comprised seven primary abilities that are still used today, although no longer independent > they are correlated:

V: verbal comprehension + meaning i.e. what does the word delineate mean?

W: word fluency i.e. how many words can be made from the letters G-E-N-E-R-A-T-I-O-N?

N: Number facility i.e. simple maths - 7 x 12 = ?

S: Space i.e. are there two items the same or are they mirror images?

M: Memory i.e. repeat these numbers forward and backward

P: Perceptual speed i.e. quickly grasp similarities and differences

I: Induction i.e. finding a rule or principle

Question 8

Describe Vernon’s (1950) Model of Intelligence.

Answer 8

A hierarchical model developed with military assistance and used to recruit army personnel with 13 different cognitive tests.

g (top row - major group factors)

v:ed + k:m (second row - minor group factors )

specific factors (third row)

Question 9

Describe Carroll’s 3-tier Model of Intelligence

Answer 9

Current most popular model - hierarchical, evidence based, universal.

From his meta-analytic work, Carroll developed a three-stratum theory of intelligence. This theory postulates that all factors resulting from the analysis of cognitive ability measures can be classified as being at one of three strata, which refer to the levels of the factors’ abstractness

General ‘g’ (striatum three)
Broad (striatum two)
> field intelligence G(f)
> crystallised intelligence G(c)
> general memory + learning G(y)
> broad visual G(v)
> broad auditory G(u)
> retrieval G(r)
> cognition speed G(s)
> processing speed G(t)

Narrow (striatum one)
Individual tests i.e. G(f1) G(f2) G(f3).. G(c1) G(c2) G(c3)…

Question 10

What is the CHC Model of Intelligence?

Answer 10

The Catell-Horn-Carroll (CHC) theory of intelligence represents a combination of two previously proposed theories of cognitive abilities, the theory of fluid and crystallised intelligence (or Gf-Gc theory) associated with Catell and Horn, and John Carroll’s three-stratum theory of cognitive abilities

The model shows that factors are not independent of each other i.e. G(f) and G(c) are correlated .4/.5 of each other. For example, People aged 60+ decline in G(f), but maintain G(c).

Question 11

What are the two main factors that influence IQ?

Answer 11

Nature/nurture
Environmental factors

Question 12

What factors influence the IQ of monozygotic twins?

Answer 12

Nature and nurture. As they are essentially of the same biology and likely exposed to same/very similar nurturing and environmental influences, it is impossible to determine which has more influence. Monozygotic twins reared together have an IQ correlation of .85.

Question 13

What factors influence the IQ for dyzygotic twins?

Answer 13

As these twins are essentially siblings born at the same time, their intelligence is best influenced by environmental or nurturing factors alone. The intelligence of dyzygotic twins reared together is .58.

Question 14

Describe some of the environmental influences on IQ

Answer 14

Pre-natal early development influences e.g. complications during labour, birth weight, anoxia)

Malnutrition and famine e.g. calories are connected to IQ

Family background e.g. income, education, parental occupation, family atmosphere

Psychosocial factors e.g. quality of language, opportunities for enlarging vocabulary, appreciation of achievement > these are highly correlated with cognitive growth (.69)

Amount of schooling is highly correlated to IQ (.69)

Question 15

Describe the advantages of conducting individual tests.

Answer 15

Extra clinical information e.g. how does the person answer, do they give up easily

Maximises motivation

Makes allowances for fatigue and handicaps

Question 16

For which cohorts are individual tests required?

Answer 16

Young children
Brain damaged patients
Psychologically disturbed
Intellectually disabled
ANY clinical assessment

Question 17

What are some of the advantages of group tests?

Answer 17

Ease and efficiency of scoring and administration

Less skill and training is required on the examiners part

Quite reliable and standardisation samples are usually large

Economical as the test booklets are re-usable

Question 18

What are some of the disadvantages of group tests?

Answer 18

Hard to gauge motivation, rapport and anxiety, which act as moderators in a test situation

Limited response choice i.e. multiple choice answers don’t allow for full richness obtained in individual tests

Individual differences are not catered for > not all tests are equally applicable to all subjects. , that is some get bored because they’re too easy or lose focus because they’re too hard

Question 19

What are the different formats in which group tests can be conducted?

Answer 19

verbal vs. non-verbal
power vs. speed (timed)
multiple choice vs free recall
multilevel testing
adaptive computer testing

Question 20

What are some of the challenges associated with computerised testing?

Answer 20

Computerised tests tend to lag well behind recent research findings

Ethical concerns have not yet caught up with technology

20% of the population dislike computers

They miss non-verbal and emotional behaviours that can moderate a tests performance

Question 21

Describe the Multidimensional Aptitude Battery - Verbal Scale

Answer 21

Usually measures G(f) or G(c) or memory

Measures dimensions/aptitudes

Uses the subtests of the WAIS (adults) and translates aptitudes into a paper/pen version

standardised administration/measures

has two halves > verbal and performance scale for example, x5 verbal items and x5 performance items - timed!

Measures arithmetic only, not attention or other factors

Have to be able to read to do this test

Question 22

Describe the Multidimensional Aptitude Battery - Performance Scale

Answer 22

Harder to do as timing a problem into a pencil/paper test e.g picture completion

Doesn’t include a spatial task but still taps visualisation tasks test

Object assembly i.e. jigsaw completion

7 minute timed tasks

Provides x10 sub-scales of information

Internal consistency is good (young .8+ correlation)

Reliability and validity quite good

Question 23

Australian Centre Education Research (ACER) Qualitative Reasoning Test

Answer 23

The ACER Abstract Reasoning Test assesses student ability to use non-verbal reasoning skills. Such reasoning is widely applicable across the curriculum, and beyond school, and is related to scholastic outcomes. Such items are particularly useful when assessments need to be done independent of language skills.

Used to screen people in a large group i.e. for cognitive testing.

Must consider norms such as age (i.e. for children) and if comparing culturally different i.e. Aus vs USA must use appropriate standards.

Written materials (reading) will always have the influence of G(c).

Correlates to .4/.5.

Overlaps G(f) and G(c).

Question 24

Describe Ravens Progressive Matrices

Answer 24

Coloured matrices are used to test children aged 4-6 or people with disabilities - ideal for testing the non-verbal

Standard matrices used for adults and kids with suspected average IQ

Culture reduced tasks

A test that reduces the need for verbal instructions i.e. reading, speaking and answering

Four versions exist and each increases in difficulty

Kids like these tests; fun; icebreakers

Question 25

Describe culture loaded tests

Answer 25

Typically better measures of G(c):
pen and paper tests
reading required
written responses
speeded tests
verbal content
recall of past/learned info

Question 26

Describe culture reduced tests

Answer 26

Typically better measures of G(f):
performance tests
purely pictorial
oral responses
power tests
non-verbal content
solve novel problems (fluid)

Question 27

Describe the Weschler IQ Tests

Answer 27

Most commonly used individual IQ tests

Only used to judge IQ and never used exclusively for clinical assessments, which need to be individual

Tests allow for anxiety/shortcomings

The test taker must have the opportunity to do their very best on that day

Psychologists are the only ones qualified to accurately administer and interpret IQ tests

Question 28

What are the three Weschler Intelligence Scale Tests?

Answer 28

Weschler Scale for Preschool and Primary Intelligence (WPPSI-IV) for ages 4 - 7.7 yo

Weschler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC-V) for ages 6.5 - 16.5 yo

Weschler Intelligence Scale for Children (WAIS-IV) for ages 16 - 89 yo

Question 29

What are the primary considerations when administering Weschler tests?

Answer 29

Results must be compared to recent norms (they change over time)

The test taker must no complete an assessment less than 2 years to avoid practice effects (high test-retest)

Where there is age cross-over i.e. a 6yo would do either the WPPSI-IV or the WISC-V, the instructor must be guided by the referral (what is being tested?) If unsure, always scale up as advanced questions offer more information.

Question 30

What are the subtests of the WAIS-IV?

Answer 30

Verbal comprehension G(c) - what is known about the culture we live in:
- Vocabulary (what does ship mean?)
- Similarities (how are a pear and a pomegranate alike?)
- Information (who is Ghengis Khan)
- (Comprehension: why do we wash clothes?)

Perceptual Organisation G(f), how well reasoning skills work with tasks never before encountered:
- Matrix reasoning
- Visual puzzles
- Block design G(v)
- (Picture completion G(v) G(c))

Working memory, not just about the maths but also attention, remembering the question?:
- Arithmetic (if you have 3 books and give 1 away, how many have you left?) G(f)
- Digit span (repeating lists of numbers backwards/forwards G(sm)
- (Letter/Number sequencing) G(sm)

Processing Speed:
- Symbol search
- Digit symbol/coding
- (Cancellation)

Question 31

What are the two factorial model of the WAIS-IV?

Answer 31

Four factor model:
verbal comprehension
perceptual reasoning
working memory
processing speed

Five factor model:
Fluid reasoning G(f)
Crystallised intelligence G(c)
Visual processing G(v)
Processing speed G(s)
Short-term memory G(sm)

Question 32

Describe Matrix Reasoning

Answer 32

Examinees complete the missing portion of a picture matrix by selecting one of five response options.
Core
Not timed
Broad: Gf, Gv

Question 33

Describe the Stanford Binet (SB-V)

Answer 33

One test
Ages 2 - 90
Mean = 100, SD = 15

Allows comparisons across ages; compared to the WAIS-IV, the SB-V has an adaptive format

Most popular alternative to the Weschler scales in Australia

Not all subtests are administered to every client - they are age-appropriate i.e. level 1 is for pre-schoolers and level 6 tasks separate the gifted from the very gifted

Question 34

What are the five factors that the SB-V tests that can be correlated to Carrolls Model?

Answer 34

Fluid reasoning = G(f)/fluid intelligence

Knowledge = G(c)

Quantitative Reasoning = G(c)

Visuo-spatial Reasoning = G(v)

Working memory = G(sm)

Question 35

SB-V: Level 5 (average, every-day adult)

Answer 35

Non-verbal:
object series/matrices
picture absurdities (e.g. ice cube in bottom of water glass)
quantitative reasoning (x4 fruit = 2 bottles of juice, how many bottles does x12 fruit produce?)
form patterns
working memory

Verbal:
knowledge/vocabulary
verbal analogies (yellow is to colour as daisy is to?)
quantitative reasoning (maths task - more about the maths than attention.memory)
position + direction
last word (remember the last word in every sentence)