Lecture 7: The Acquisition of Expert Performance

Question 1

expert performance

Answer 1

Consistently superior perforamnce on a set of representative tasks for the domain that can be administered to any subject

Question 2

the traditional view of expert performance

Answer 2

“Giftedness for a given activity is necessary to attain the highest level of performance in that activity.”

Question 3

the most common view of expert performance

Answer 3

performance = ability x effort

Question 4

Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligence

Answer 4

argued there are 7 kinds of intelligence:

• linguistic-verbal
• logical mathematical
• spatial
• muscial
• bodily kinaesthetic
• interpersonal
• intrapersonal

Question 5

linguistic-verbal intelligence

Answer 5

has to do with writing and reading
Ex. creative writers

Question 6

logical-mathematical intelligence

Answer 6

has to do with mathematical and logical skills
Ex, engineers

Question 7

spatial intelligence

Answer 7

focuses on abstract problem-solving skills
Ex. architects

Question 8

musical intelligence

Answer 8

involves listening to, signing, and making music accurately
Ex. musicians

Question 9

bodily kinaesthetic intelligence

Answer 9

focuses on the coordination of one’s bodily movements
Ex. athletes

Question 10

interpersonal intelligence

Answer 10

involves understanding other people and how they differ
Ex. managers, teachers

Question 11

intrapersonal intelligence

Answer 11

has to do with being able to use your knowledge of yourself and your experiences to understand others
Ex. writers

Question 12

Howard Gardner’s point of view

Answer 12

• Gardner argues that there is a biological, largely genetic-based capacity that allows us to develop these skills
• He argues that we should spend more time helping children to identify their natural competencies and gifts and cultivate those.
• There are hundreds of ways to succeed, and many different abilities that will help you get there

Question 13

Gardner’s ways of measuring intelligence

Answer 13

• Gardner developed ways of measuring various kinds of intelligence
• Ex. observing the types of things that young children like to play with, observing how children play with each other to measure interpersonal intelligence

Question 14

Gardner on the correlates of intelligence

Answer 14

• Gardner found that types of intelligence were not correlated with each other
• This provides support for different types of intelligence

Question 15

evidence for the talent view

Answer 15

• The performance of prodigies (children who acquire expert levels of performance at a very young age)
• The performance of savants (individuals without normal intelligence but who display very unusual abilities that other people do not have
• Seemingly superior basic abilities that predestine one for success in a certain domain (ex. Absolute pitch in music and the spatial memory of chess players)

Question 16

what makes children prodigies?

Answer 16

• Most prodigies don’t show great talent at a young age: they show incredible interest and a willingness to learn
• Prodigies are raised in an environment that fosters success
• Their parents are also visionary and highly encourage their children to pursue their goals

Question 17

absolute pitch and child prodigies

Answer 17

• The early ability of musicians is often reflected in absolute pitch
• But 1/100 Asian people have absolute pitch because their languages are tonal
• If you train a child in piano at a young enough age, they are more likely to develop it
• So, absolute pitch isn’t actually that rare in musically-trained Asian children

Question 18

child prodigies and future success

Answer 18

Being identified as a prodigy doesn’t predict future success

Question 19

how did Tiger Woods become a prodigy?

Answer 19

• Early exposure
• Extensive training
• Involved parents
• Keen interest
• High self-control

Question 20

prodigies

Answer 20

children who acquire expert levels of performance at a very young age

Question 21

savants

Answer 21

individuals without normal intelligence but who display very unusual abilities that other people do not have

Question 22

the performance of savants

Answer 22

We could all learn most of the things savants do if we had the same kind of obsessive focus

Question 23

superior basic abilities

Answer 23

• Absolute pitch perception among musicians
• Visual-spatial memory of chess players

Question 24

evidence against basic abilities as a prerequisite

Answer 24

• Failure to find basic abilities that predict later expertise
• Failure to find experts with less than 10 years of training

Question 25

Simon & Chase, 1973 study of chess masters

Answer 25

• Expert chess players only have an advantage against rookies if the chessboard layout is meaningful
• Demonstrates that they have an efficient mental representation of the chessboard that allows them to succeed

Question 26

Ericsson & Charness’ conclusion

Answer 26

Even for the most successful individuals, the major domains of expertise are sufficiently complex that mastery of them requires approximately 10 years of essentially full-time preparation, which corresponds to several thousands of hours of practice (3000 hours for good amateur players)

Question 27

what is the key to develop expertise in a domain?

Answer 27

• The traditional view that successful individuals have special innate abilities and basic capacities is not consistent with the evidence
• Differences between expert and less accomplished performers instead reflect acquired knowledge and skills or physiological adaptations that result from training