Unit 11 Testing and Individual Differences Unit

Unit 11: Testing and Individual Differences

Unit 11 - Overview • • Introduction to Intelligence Assessing Intelligence The Dynamics of Intelligence Studying Genetic and Environmental Influences on Intelligence • Group Differences and the Question of Bias Click on the any of the above hyperlinks to go to that section in the presentation.

Introduction • Intelligence test

Is Intelligence One General Ability or Several Specific Abilities? • Spearman’s General intelligence (g) – Factor analysis – Comparison to athleticism • Thurstone’s counter argument g

Is Intelligence One General Ability or Several Specific Abilities? Theories of Multiples Intelligences: Garner’s Eight Intelligences • Savant syndrome • Gardner’s 8 Intelligences – – – – Linguistic Logical-mathematical Musical Spatial Bodily-kinesthetic Intrapersonal Interpersonal Naturalist • Grit

Is Intelligence One General Ability or Several Specific Abilities? Theories of Multiples Intelligences: Garner’s Eight Intelligences • Grit Success = determination, “keep-at-it-ness” along with gaining expertise Expert: Requires a minimum of working hard at something at a higher level

Is Intelligence One General Ability or Several Specific Abilities? Theories of Multiples Intelligences: Sternberg’s Three Intelligences • Sternberg’s Three Intelligences – Analytical (academic problemsolving intelligence – Creating intelligence – Practical intelligence

Spearman’s G Factor: § Spearman’s General Intelligence (g factor) § Spearman & others said one single factor (a general factor) underlies specific mental abilities § This factor is measured by every task on an intelligence test § g = general 10

Theories of Multiple Intelligences (pp. 424 -426) Is there 1 kind? …or 2? …or 3? . . or 8? Spearman: 1 basic general intel. (g factor) Gardner: said there are 8: -verbal -movement (kinesthetic) -math -understanding ourselves (emot. ) -music -understanding others (emot. ) -spatial analysis/visual -understanding our physical (art) environment (“street smarts”) Sternberg’s Big 3: -analytical: academic problem solving— 1 right answer -creative intell. : react to novel situations & use novel ideas -practical intel. : deal w/ everyday problems, come up w/ multiple solutions 11

Intelligence & Creativity § Creativity: the ability to produce novel and valuable ideas… § Those = creative usually have at least avg. or above avg. g factor § Things that make this possible: § Expertise (have knowledge base) § imaginative thinking skills (outside the box) § venturesome personality (take chances) § intrinsic motivation § creative environment 12

Are There Multiple Intelligences? § Savant Syndrome § condition in which a person otherwise limited in mental ability has an exceptional specific skill… --often (NOT always. . ) related to autism § Computation § Drawing (EX below) § Social Intelligence § the know-how involved in comprehending social situations & managing oneself successfully § Emotional Intelligence p. 426 § ability to perceive, express, understand, & regulate emotions 13

Emotional Intelligence • Emotional intelligence – Perceive emotions – Understand emotions – Manage emotions – Use emotions for adaptive or creative thinking

Is Intelligence Neurologically Measurable?

Is Intelligence Neurologically Measurable? Brain Size and Complexity • Brain size studies Is some correlation of IQ to brain size BUT not at all consistent…. . some “geniuses” • Brain complexity studies – Neural plasticity – Gray matter (mostly neural cell bodies) vs. white matter(axons)

Is Intelligence Neurologically Measurable? Brain Function NOT just how much U know but also how FAST… • Perceptual speed • Neurological speed

Brain Function and Intelligence § People who can perceive the stimulus very quickly tend to score somewhat higher on intelligence tests § P. 430: processing speed, perceptual speed & neurological speed are all involved Stimulus Mask Question: Long side on left or right? 18

Origins of Intelligence Testing • Francis Galton’s (Darwin’s cousin) intelligence testing – Reaction time – Sensory acuity – Muscular power – Body proportions • Hereditary Genius: Came up with phrase “nature vs. nurture” • First to attempt to assess intell. , even though did not test out as valid or reliable.

Origins of Intelligence Testing Alfred Binet: Predicting School Achievement • Alfred Binet – Identifying French school children in need of assistance – Mental age – Chronological age

Added from Michaelis/Myers Origins of Intelligence Assessments/Inventories (“Testing”) § Plato: Saw & noted individual differences § Intelligence Test: *Binet (1905 +-) § method of assessing individual’s mental aptitudes & comparing them to others, using numerical scores § Testing Paris school kids to ID those who low & needing help 22

Origins of Intelligence Testing Lewis Terman: The Innate IQ • Stanford-Binet Test – Lewis Terman – New age norms – Adding “superior” end – Binet only to ID what?

Origins of Intelligence Testing Lewis Terman: The Innate IQ • Intelligence quotient (IQ) • IQ = (mental age/chronological age) X 100 • IQ of 100 is considered average • World War I testing: Immigrants: language problem or intelligence problem?

§ Intelligence Quotient (IQ) § Originally, ratio of mental age (ma) to chronological age (ca) multiplied by 100 § IQ = ma ÷ ca x 100 (ma/ca x 100) § on contemporary tests, the avg performance for a specific age is assigned a score of 100 § Most intellg. tests (including the Stanford-Binet) no longer compute an “IQ” score (reification: p. 422) § What IS Intelligence? § ability to learn from experience, solve problems, & use knowledge to adapt to new situations § Is determined by a social definition & varies from culture to culture, era to era 25

What is Intelligence? § Factor Analysis § statistical procedure that identifies clusters of related items (called factors) on a test § ID’s different performance dimensions that underlie our total score § These factors indicate a basic ability level § Eugenics: Terman & others belief that genetics was the predominate factor in IQ --was a “scientific” sort of racism…no major basis in modern psych…Basically said some races, etc. , were genetically better than others. Who used these ideas? 26

§ Mental Age § measure of intelligence test performance devised by Alfred Binet, Paris, late 1800’s § Why? to ID slower kids in Paris school system to help them do better § chronological age: actual age § mental age: if a child does as well as the average 8 year-old is said to have a of 8 § Stanford-Binet: widely used American revision of Binet’s original intelligence test (1914 -15) § revised by Terman at Stanford University § Stern designed the intelligence quotient (IQ) 27

Modern Tests of Mental Abilities • Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) – Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC) – These added what component to intelligence assessments?

Assessing Intelligence: Weschler added Performance Component in 1939 b/c of problems assessing those w/ some verbal disadvantages Sample Items from the WAIS VERBAL PERFORMANCE response Picture Completion Picture Arrangement Block Design Object Assembly Digit-Symbol Substitution General Info Similarities Arithmetic Reasoning Vocabulary Comprehension Digit Span From Thorndike and Hagen, 1977 29

Assessing (“Testing”!!) Intelligence § Aptitude Test: designed to predict a person’s future performance § looks at abilities…what you should be able to do § aptitude is the capacity to learn § Achievement Test § test designed to assess what person has learned § Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) § most widely used intelligence test (WWI) § 2 subtests 1) verbal 2) performance (nonverbal) § WAIS-R = revised adult test; § WISC-R = revised kids’ test 30

WAIS-R EX’s: Visual Analogies…. . block design…. . pic sequencing…. . WAIS-R performance assessment kit 31

Most commonly administered intelligence assessments: Ø WISC-IV: most commonly used IQ test for ages 6 -16 Ø WAIS -III is for adults. Ø WIPPSI-III is for preschoolers. Ø Others also use the Stanford-Binet, 5 th edition, or the Kaufman ABC-II battery for children. NOTE: Roman numerals reflect the multiple revisions of the tests since their original versions. 32

Modern Tests of Mental Abilities • Achievement tests • Aptitude tests

Assessing (“Testing”!!) Intelligence § Aptitude Test: designed to predict a person’s future performance § looks at abilities…what you should be able to do § aptitude is the capacity to learn § Achievement Test § test designed to assess what person has learned § Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) § most widely used intelligence test (WWI) § 2 subtests 1) verbal 2) performance (nonverbal) § WAIS-R = revised adult test; § WISC-R = revised kids’ test 35

Principles of Test Construction

Principles of Test Construction Standardization • Standardization – Normal curve (bell curve)

Principles of Test Construction Standardization • Normal curve (bell curve)

Assessing Intelligence § Standardization § defining meaningful scores by comparison w/ the performance of a pre-tested standardization group to create a norm Normal Curve § symmetrical bell-shaped curve that describes the distribution of many physical & psychological attributes § most scores fall near the avg, & fewer scores lie near the extremes 45

Normal Curve: (aka at times as the bell curve 46

Principles of Test Construction Standardization • Flynn effect

Principles of Test Construction: Standardization Kids are getting smarter? ! Who’d a thunk it… ? Flynn effect: Consistent worldwide rise in IQ scores, even though achievement scores like SAT dropped …WHY? • Flynn effect

Why Flynn Effect (James Flynn, 1987, 1999) occurs… It’s a mystery…but could be lots of things… Ø Test sophistication: assessments are better now…more accurately assess Ø Nutrition: taller, smarter, longer life expectancies Ø More formal educations for more ppl Ø More stimulating environment b/c of t___? Ø Less kid-diseases that might cause handicaps Ø Smaller families = more parental resources (time, money, effort) on each kid ------So. . Why are SAT scores down? Probably b/c more ppl and more diverse ppl taking SAT now instead of just the middle & upper middle class. 49

Principles of Test Construction Reliability • Reliability – Scores correlate – Test-retest reliability – Split-half reliability

Principles of Test Construction Validity • Validity – Content validity • Criterion – Predictive validity

Assessments of Intelligence (aka Testing) Reliability & Validity § Reliability: extent to which a test yields consistent results assessed by consistency of scores in 3 ways: § two halves of the test § alternate forms of the test § retesting § Validity: How well a test measures or predicts what it is supposed to EX: Does SAT predict success in the 1 st year of college? 3 aspects to validity… Content validity Predictive validity Criterion validity 52

VALIDITY Something CAN have reliability but NOT have validity! A. Content Validity: extent to which a test samples a behavior that is of interest EX: Driving test that samples driving tasks… In driving, do 3 pt. turns, parking, handling the car in tight spaces, etc. , represent things you will need to do while driving? DOES it evaluate the content you want to look at? § EX: Are college grades being predicted by SAT performance? …or. . . § the measure (part of the operational definition) used in defining whether the test does have predictive validity B. Predictive Validity: success w/ which a test predicts SOME behavior (or criterion) it is designed to predict… especially intelligence tests, which should predict future performance § assessed by computing the correlation between test scores and the criterion behavior (behav. you’re interested in) § This is whether it can give good predictions RE: the behavior looked 53 at… or not

Assessing Intelligence: (436) Relating body wt. & success to predict… The larger the sample the better it can predict Football 10 linemen’s 9 success § As the range of data under consideration narrows (goes from Greater correlation over broad range of body wts. (Lg. #) 8 7 6 Little correlation w/in restricted range (sm. #) 5 4 3 2 predictive power diminishes § BTW: What is this type of graph called? 1 0 180 larger to smaller range), its 250 290 Body weight in pounds 54

Stability or Change?

Stability or Change? Aging and Intelligence • Cross-Sectional Evidence • Longitudinal Evidence – Cohort

Stability or Change? Aging and Intelligence • It all depends – Crystallized intelligence – Fluid intelligence

Stability or Change? Stability Over the Life Span

Extremes of Intelligence: Low…. or High

Extremes of Intelligence The Low Extreme • Intellectual disability – Mental retardation – Down syndrome • 21 st chromosome – Mainstreamed

The Dynamics of Intelligence: The Low extreme of Intelligence: § Intellectual Disability: challenged) § § (formerly retardation or mentally a condition of limited mental ability indicated by an intelligence score below 70 produces difficulty in adapting to the demands of life varies from mild to profound § Down Syndrome § Intellectual disability and associated physical disorders caused by an extra chromosome in one’s genetic makeup…mom’s age… (Chromosome 22) 62

Extremes of Intelligence The High Extreme • Terman’s study of gifted • Self-fulfilling prophecy • Appropriate developmental placement

High vs. low extremes of intelligence: Ø Myth: High IQ kids are mal-adjusted, weird, socially inept…. this is NOT TRUE -There is a high correlation for high IQ & healthy, welladjusted, academically successful adults… Most thrive, though some are isolated more as kids b/c they don’t fit in w/ immature other kids Ø Remember: “giftedness” is a socially defined trait & not a “naturally occurring trait” like eye color or height (what is this called? ) Ø Brain size (relative to body size) IS slightly positively correlated to intelligence 64

Twin and Adoption Studies • Identical twin studies – Polygenetic – Heritability • Adoptive children studies

Heritability

Environmental Influences: The “Have’s & the Have-Not’s” • Early environmental influences – Tutored human enrichment – Targeted training • Schooling & intelligence – Project Head Start: J. M Hunt: Helps “even the playing field” for the disadvantaged

Big debate: tracking (segregating by ability level): Ø Often = low income & minority put into low levels, which encourages the stereotype threat… which. . . tends to widen, not shrink, the gap betwn. lo & hi especially in elementary school Best idea may be, like China & Japan: Avoid tracking thru elementary 74

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Group Differences in Intelligence Test Scores • • • Gender Similarities and Differences Spelling Verbal ability Nonverbal ability Sensation Emotion-detecting ability Math and spatial aptitudes

Group Differ. & Environ. Factors: The Seed Analogy: Group differences & the impact of environment: J. M. HUNT was one who emphasized this…that education is a KEY…Helped begin Head Start Ø Same seeds (genetics) …but different soil…levels of fertilizer…water…. sun these = so a differing environ. Ø Would they grow the same? Remember the kids in Romania orphanage & their “FAILURE TO THRIVE? ” Variation within group Seeds Poor soil Fertile soil Difference within group 78

Group Differences: Gender KNOW the general male & female tendencies toward certain abilities… (from info p. 448 -9) Do these stronger abilities apply to ALL males or females? The Mental Rotation Test : spatial understanding Which of the other circles contain a configuration of blocks identical to the “standard” fig. (left)? Standard Responses 79

Group Differences in Intelligence Test Scores Racial and Ethnic Similarities and Differences • Ethnic similarities • Ethnic differences

The Question of Bias • Two meanings of bias – Popular sense – Scientific sense • Test-taker’s expectations – Stereotype threat

Stereotype Threat § Self-confirming concern/belief: negative stereotypes give us “true” evaluation § Relates to “self-fulfilling prophecy” & placebo effect: believing something IS true increase chance it happens: “I will probably score low” = scoring lower Students told they are at a disadvantage on a test tend to do worse than those who are told the test should be one they do well on… EX’s: “You are not likely to do as well on this as usual…” …OR “You should do very well on this b/c it is written in a way that will show your strengths…” Also Afri. -Amer. or females taking test w/ only that group perform better than in mixed groups Summary: What you think & believe about YOU affect how you perform! 82

The End The End

PPL to know RE: Intelligence & intelligence assessments: Binet Flynn Gardner Spearman Sternberg Terman Wechsler 84

Scoring Assessments Emotional Intelligence Assess. : On Items 5 28 33 (If put 1, change to 5 2 = 4 3 stays 3 4 =2 5 = 1 Then ADD all together…those #’s you changed + #’s you had at beginning for those NOT changed ----------------1. Friday 11. JANE 2. PY (silver anniversary) 12. 9: 00 PM 3. 25 13. b (both grow in ground) 4. anniversary 14. a. Alternate #’s go up by 2 & down 1 (from 1 – 10) 5. MENSA 15. e: only on not man-made art 6. b 16. PARACHUTE 7. b 17. 5 8. b 18. c 9. TOM 19. LAND 10. HOUSE 20. # of lines goes down opposite w/ stick & stick alternates lo L/top R 85

Definition Slides

Intelligence = mental quality consisting of the ability to learn from experience, solve problems, and use knowledge to adapt to new situations.

Intelligence Test = a method of assessing an individual's mental aptitudes and comparing them with those of others, using numerical scores.

General Intelligence (g) = 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.

Factor Analysis = a statistical procedure that identifies clusters of related items (called factors) on a test; used to identify difference dimensions of performance that underlie a person’s total score.

Savant Syndrome = a condition in which a person otherwise limited in mental ability has an exceptional specific skill, such as in computation or drawing.

Grit = the in psychology, grit is passion and perseverance in the pursuit of long-term goals.

Emotional Intelligence = the ability to perceive, understand, manage, and use emotions.

Mental Age = a measure of intelligence test performance devised by Binet; the chronological age that most typically corresponds to a given level of performance. Thus, a child who does as well as the average 8 -year-old is said to have a mental age of 8.

Stanford-Binet = the widely used American revision (by Terman at Stanford University) 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 X 100). On contemporary intelligence tests, the average performance for a given age is assigned a score of 100, with scores assigned to relative performance above or below average.

Achievement Tests = tests designed to assess what a person has learned.

Aptitude Tests = tests designed to predict a person’s future performance; aptitude is the capacity to learn.

Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) = the WAIS is the most widely used intelligence test; contains verbal and performance (nonverbal) subtests.

Standardization = defining uniform testing procedures and meaningful scores by comparison with the performance of a pretested group.

Normal Curve = a symmetrical, bell-shaped curve that describes the distribution of many physical and psychological attributes. Most scores fall near the average, 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 two halves of the test, on alternate forms of the test or on retesting.

Validity = the extent to which a test measures or predicts what it is suppose to.

Content Validity = the extent to which a test samples the behavior that is of interest.

Predictive Validity = the success with which a test predicts the behavior it is designed to predict; it is assessed by computing the correlation between test scores and the criterion behavior (also called criterion-related validity).

Cohort = a group of people 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 abstractly; tends to decrease during late adulthood.

Intellectual Disability = a condition of limited mental ability, indicated by an intelligence score of 70 or below and difficulty in adapting to the demands of life. • Formerly referred to as mental retardation

Down Syndrome = a condition of mild to severe intellectual disability and associated physical disorders caused by an extra copy of chromosome 21.

Hereditability = the proportion of variation among individuals that we can attribute to genes. The hereditability 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.

Theories of Multiple Intelligences (pp. 424 -426) Is there 1 kind? …or 2? …or 3? . . or 8? Spearman: 1 basic general intel. (g factor) Gardner: said there are 8: -verbal -movement (kinesthetic) -math -understanding ourselves (emot. ) -music -understanding others (emot. ) -spatial analysis/visual -understanding our physical (art) environment (“street smarts”) Sternberg’s Big 3: -analytical: academic problem solving— 1 right answer -creative intell. : react to novel situations & use novel ideas -practical intel. : deal w/ everyday problems, come up w/ multiple solutions 113