Test 3 Flashcards
Francis Galton?
- Darwin’s cousin
- interested in measuring individual differences in all manner of things…including intelligence
- developed first intelligence tests, based upon reflexes, sensory acuity, strength
London World Exposition?
Galton made money and charged the public to take his intelligence test. Biased and not very accurate.
Alfred Binet?
- hired by French gov. to devise a test that to identify students “at risk” so that remediation could begin early
- came up with 30 tasks that identified a child’s natural intelligence
- test was brought to U.S. by Lewis Terman, who translated it and called it the Stanford-Binet intelligence test
Natural intelligence?
intelligence that was independent of their ability to read or comprehend instruction
David Wechsler?
- recognized that the Stanford-Binet test was biased towards native-born, English-speakers
- devised the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) or the Wechsler Intelligence Sale for Children (WISC). these test both verbal and nonverbal ability
How were the first IQ scores calculated?
(Mental age(based on test score)/real age)*100
this meant that as you aged, you got less intelligent
What is the modern calculation of the IQ scores?
(your test score/average test score for your age)*100
So, IQ is relatively stable over you adult lifespan.
Average IQ is 100, with standard deviation of 15
“genius” is an IQ over 145 (about .1% percent of people.
“retardation” is an IQ below 70 (about 2.5% of people)
crystallized intelligence?
knowledge from experience (fact based) gain over time
Fluid intelligence?
processing speed and reflexes (dynamic)
What is the text definition of intelligence?
a hypothetical mental ability that allows us to direct our thinking, adapt to our circumstances, and learn from our experiences
What is the Spearman definition of intelligence?
American psychologist who came up with the idea of "g" and "s", or generalized intelligence and specific intelligence four subcategories (recalling movies, spotting birds, speaking in public, and logic problems)
What did Thurstone have to say about Spearman’s definition of intelligence?
Thurstone argued that “g” was not a single entity, but instead was made up of several different abilities (verbal fluency and comprehension; spatial ability; memory; perceptual speed) that all contribute to intelligence
Conclusion of Spearman and Thurstone?
They were both correct,,there IS something like “g” which reflects the combination of many different mid-level abilities (like Thurstone’s abilities), which reflect similar kinds of task-specfic abilities (like Spearman’s “s”)
Where does intelligence come from?
- genetics and environment both play a key role; monozygotic (identical) twins are more likely to have similar IQ’s than siblings
- however, dizygotic twins (not genetical identical, just born at same time) also have a higher correlation between IQs than siblings born at different times, reflecting a role for environment
How does race pal a role in results of intelligence testing? (asian americans higher than european americans)
some of the difference in IQ’s between race is due to differences in SES (leading to differences in nutrition; parenting; educational opportunities and life experiences)
some to cultural bias in tests (this problem has been reduced in the last 30 years)
some to the effects of stereotypes on test-taking performance
-to date, there is NO evidence of a genetic difference contributing to differences in IQ scores
What is social psychology?
- focuses on the causes and consequences of interpersonal behavior; on our perceptions of people, how we want to be perceived, and how we interact with one another
- examines things like prejudice; group behavior; cross-cultural psychology; sex and gender issues
What is social behavior?
how we interact with other humans, individually and in groups
Survival of the fittest?
Darwinian evolution a key theory for explaining human behavior; we act in a way that increases the likelihood that our genes will be successfully passed to future generations
What is aggression?
behavior that is intended to harm others
- to maximize reproductive fitness, we often resort to aggression
- this sometimes refers to a premeditated attempt to gain resources by hunting others
- other times, the aggression may be defensive (you are bring to repel a real or perceived threat) or impulsive (you are frustrated or stressed and lash out..this is a form of displaced behavior)
Women and aggression?
women are just as aggressive…however, they tend to be more premeditated; less physically aggressive; and more psychologically aggressive (spread rumors; cut rivals out of a social circle)
what is cooperation?
behavior by two or more people that leads to mutual benefits
- cooperation is often more rewarding than aggression…but potentially riskier, as your success depends on the behavior of others (prisoners dilemma)
- ability to identify trustworthy people and affiliate with them is important; people usually quite good at this
kin selection?
often done to increase survival of related members of species
Reciprocal altruism?
altruism may occur in exchange for later favor
True altruism?
sometimes altruism exists for no obvious reason…for nothing at all
Group behavior?
- extreme behavior often manifest under conditions of group pressure(act according to group norms) or under deindividuation (morality diminished when in a crowd)
- predjudice and discrimination my reflect evolutionary competition for scarce resources; hard to change, as it may be hard-wired; can try increased contact of recategorization
Predjudice?
positive evaluation of in-group members/negative evaluation of out-group
discrimination?
positive interactions with in-group/negative interactions with out-group
Informational social influence?
group social behavior often due to desire to conform with group opinion because you are not sure what is right and act according to “majority rules”
Normative social influence?
group social behavior often due to desire to conform with group opinion because you want to be “liked” by the group
Conformity most likely when:
- responses must be made in public
- when there are few dissenting voices in a group
- when a group is very attractive
- or when a leader is particularly influential
What does like mean?
to be fond of or partial to and increases with repeated contact, similarity, and physical attraction
What does love mean?
to adore or worship. a much more powerful social interaction
Neurobiology of romantic behavior?
the reward pathways in the brain are heavily implicated…these include the VTA in the midbrain and dopamine release in the nucleus accumbens
Oxytocin?
a second neurotransmitter which produces feelings of attraction, connection, and empathy
-also leads to particularly vivid memories which might be why we remember our relationships, including breakups, so well!
Mate choice?
things like kindness, intelligence, dependability important to both sexes
- evolutionary pressure suggests males tend to choose females with good reproductive tendencies
- females tend to choose males that will provide a good home for their young
Social cognition?
focuses on how we view our peers; how w learn about, remember and think about other human beings.
when we engage in social cognition, our frontal lobes become active…and damage to our frontal lobes impairs our ability to think about other human beings
Social behavior influenced….?
by attitudes..enduring evaluation of a person, thing, or event.
ABC’s of attitudes?
affective, behavioral, and cognitive aspects
Attitudes?
affect how war see and interact with the world, often, we are blind to things that are counter to our attitudes and we fixate on things that support our attitudes
Explicit attitudes?
attires that are often publicly state if they are “politically correct” and /or likely to be supported by their peers
IAT?
implicit association test where unconscious or hidden implicit attitudes can often be detected
Implicit vs. explicit attitudes?
Male or Family and Female or Career vs.
Male or Career and Female or Family.
- if they match there will be no difference in the speed to which they pair the various descriptors to “male” or “female”
- if they do not match, they will more quickly pair some words with “male” and other words with “female” revealing their implicit attitude
Cognitive dissonance?
a feeling of discomfort caused when there is a conflict between different attitudes, or between behavior and attitudes.
To reduce this, we may try to rationalize the discrepancy or we may try to change our attitudes or our behavior
Persuasion?
used to change a person’s attitudes so that they model your beliefs
systematic?
used if person is paying attention; involves presentation of facts