Task 2 - Measuring Intelligence

Question 1

Mental Ability

Answer 1

Capabilities on tasks whose difficulty lies in their demands on mental processes

• > reasoning, understanding, imagning, remembering
• > not assessed by physical skills or sensory abilities

Question 2

Dimensions of Mental Ability

Answer 2

Multidimensional Aptitude Battery (MAB):

• Vocabulary
• Arithmetic
• Spatial
• Picture Arrangement

Question 3

Spearman’s g factor

Answer 3

Suggested correlation of performance in various courses could be reflection of a single, general mental ability

Question 4

G-factor

Answer 4

General intelligence measure derived from correlations on tasks in different domains

Question 5

G-loadings

Answer 5

loadings on subtasks
-> higher g-loading = higher correlation with g-factor
highest g-loadings: verbal, numerical, spatial or figural content (involved reasoning)

Question 6

Thurstone 7 primary factors of mental ability

Answer 6

1. Verbal Fluency
2. Verbal Comprehension
3. Numerical Ability
4. Spatial Visualization
5. Memory
6. Perceptual Speed
7. Reasoning
   - > tasks assessing these correlated highly with each other
   - > g-abilities: can be split up in more specific sub-tasks

Question 7

Development of Mental Abilities

Answer 7

People’s levels of intelligence increase rapidly through childhood and continue to increase into late adolescence (decrease during old age)

Question 8

Biological correlates of Mental ability

Answer 8

Brain size: .33
Nerve conduction velocity: inconsistent results (.4-~0)
Reaction time: -.3, slower, the less capable
Inspection time (length before stimulus is noticed): -.3s
Brain waves averaged evoked potentials (shorter latency, higher frequency, lower amplitude, more complex waves)
-> .3s if combined
Brain glucose metabolism: higher IQ more efficient brain processing

Question 9

Genetic and Environmental Influences on Mental Ability

Answer 9

children heritability: .4, shared environment .35

Adults: heritability .65, shared environment

Question 10

Additive genetic variance

Answer 10

Combined effects of genes are sum of separate effects of each gene

Question 11

Non-additive genetic variance

Answer 11

Combined effects of genes are different from what would be expected based on separate effects of each gene

Question 12

Genetic correlation with age

Answer 12

Heritability correlation gets higher with age into late adolescence from childhood

• > childhood: .4
• > adulthood: .5

Question 13

Womb environment influences

Answer 13

Common shared environment for identical twins even if adopted

• > similar nutrients, toxins and hormones
• > correlation with mental ability: .2 fraternal twins considered, .05 when nontwin siblings considered

Question 14

Nutrition

Answer 14

Longer duration of breastfeeding associated with higher levels of mental ability
-> might not be causal: mothers who breastfeed might be smarter

Question 15

Birth order

Answer 15

First-born children have slightly higher IQs as adults than successor siblings

Question 16

Mental ability and academic achievement

Answer 16

Fairly strong relation of IQ and academic achievement

• > strength of relation decreases with higher levels of education
• > IQ predicts better at lower levels of education

Question 17

Mental ability and job

Answer 17

Moderately strong tendency for people with better mental abilities to gain higher-status jobs and higher incomes

Question 18

Mental ability and longevity and health

Answer 18

People with higher IQ tend to live longer than children with lower IQs
-> positive correlation with longevity and health

Question 19

Mental ability & criminality

Answer 19

People with higher IQ tend to be more law abiding

-> realize consequences

Question 20

Mental ability & mating

Answer 20

Spouses tend to be similar in verbal abilities, but not in nonverbal abilities
-> less important aspect for relationships quality

Question 21

Fluid intelligence

Answer 21

assessed by novel tasks: e.g. puzzles

• > indicators of fluid ability
• > tasks do not make sense intuitively

Question 22

Chrystallized intelligence

Answer 22

Assessed by familiar tasks resembling tests given in school (e.g. mathematical thinking)

• > make sense intuitively
• > indicators of chrystallized intelligence

Question 23

Flynn Effect

Answer 23

People today score much higher on mental ability tests than people a few generations ago in many countries
-> largest increases in fluid intelligence

Question 24

Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences

Answer 24

eight distinct intelligences:

• linguistic,
• logical-mathematical
• spatial
• musical
• bodily-kinesthetic
• interpersonal
• intrapersonal
• naturalistic
• > evidence contradicts though: indicates general mental ability

Question 25

Sternberg’s Triachic Theory of Intelligence

Answer 25

Three aspects:

• analytic intelligence
• creative intelligence
• practical intelligence
• > evidence suggests all correlated with general mental ability

Question 26

Emotional intelligence

Answer 26

Ability to think accurately about emotions

-> result suggest: is related to personality and general mental ability

Question 27

Causes of Flynn effect

Answer 27

• better education
• effects of new technology
• hybrid vigor: matin of individuals from genetically dissimilar subpopulations
• hybrid factors: blood lead levels (less exposure to lead), genomic imprinting, nutrition, less pathogen stress, life history speed

Question 28

Life history speed

Answer 28

fast: lots of sexual partners, offspring, early parenthood
- > associated with high pathogen stress and adverse conditions
slow: few sexual partners, less offspring, late parenthood,
- > better IQ due to slower life history speed

Question 29

Tree stump phenomenon

Answer 29

Difficult to get lowest score on IQ test: you wouldn’t even need to answer for 48

Question 30

Low Correlation

Answer 30

0.1-0.3

Question 31

Medium Correlation

Answer 31

0.3-0.5

Question 32

High Correlation

Answer 32

above .5