Chapter 10: Intelligence Flashcards
intelligence
the mental potential to learn from experience, solve probllems, and use knowledge to adapt to new situations
general intelligence (g factor)
a general intelligence factor that, according to spearman and others, underlies specific mental abilities and is therefore measured by every task on an intelligence test
savant sydrome
a condition in whihc a person otherwise limited in mental abilities has an exceptional specific skill (pinball dude)
intelligence test
a method for assessing an individual’s mental aptitudes and comparing them with those of others, using numerical scores
achievement test
a test designed to assess what a person has learned
aptitude test
a test designed to predict a person’s future performance; aptitude is the capacity to learn
mental age
a measure of intelligence test performance designed by Binet; the chronological age that most typically corresponds to a given level of performance. Thus, a child who does as well as an average 8-year-old is said to have a mental age of 8
Stanford-Binet
the widely used American revision of Binet’s original intelligence test
intelligence quotient (IQ)
defined originally as the ratio of mental age (ma) to chronological age (ca) multiplied by 100 (thus, IQ = ma/ca *100) on contemporary intelligence tests, the average performance for a given age is assigned a score of 100
Wechsier Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS)
WAIS + childhood version are the most widely used intelligence tests; contain verbal and performance (nonverbal) subtests
standardization
defining uniform testing procedures and meaningful scores by comparison with the performances of a pretested group
normal curve
the bell-shaped curve that describes the distribution of many physical and psychological attributes. Many scores fall near the average, and fewer and fewer scores lie near the extremes
reliability
the extent to which a test yields consistent results, as assessed by the consistency of scores on to halves of the test, on alternative forms of the test, or on retests
validity
the extent to which a test measures or predicts what it is supposed to
content validity
the extent to which a test samples the behaviour that is of interest
predictive validity
the success with which a test predicts the behaviour it is designed to predict; it is assessed by computing the correlation between test scores and the criterion behaviour
cohort
a group of people sharing a common characteristic, such as from a given time period
crystallized intelligence
our accumulated knowledge and verbal skills; tends to increase with age
fluid intelligence
our ability to reason speedily and abstractedly; tends to decrease during late adulthood
intellectual disability
a condition of limited mental ability, indicated by an intelligence test score of 70 or below and difficulty adapting to the demands of life
down syndrome
a condition of mild to severe intellectual disability and associated physical disorders caused by an extra copy of chromosome 21
heritability
the proportion of variation among individuals that we can attribute to genes. The heritability of a trait may vary, depending on the range of populations and environments studied
stereotype threat
a self-confirming concern that one will be evaluated based on a negative stereotype
