L6 Intelligence and Creativity

Ch 8

What is the broad definition of intelligence?

• the ability to derive info, learn from experience, adapt to env, and understand

• ability to correctly utilise thought and reason

What is meant by the psychometric approach to measuring intelligence?

An approach that identifies and measures the trait/set of traits that characterises some people to a greater extent than others

What is the earliest conception of “intelligence” as a concept?

• Spearman’s g factor theory of intelligence

• g = general mental ability

• s = special abilities

Describe the difference between fluid and crystallised intelligence

• Fluid ⇒ ability to use mind actively to solve novel problems; believed to represent raw information processing power

  • Global capacity to reason, ability to learn new things, think abstractly, and solve problems

• Crystallised ⇒ Acquired through schooling and other life experiences; accumulated

  • Prior learning and past experiences, based on facts, increases with age

• Cattel and Horn

What is the forerunner of the modern IQ test?

Binet’s test ⇒ Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale

• Intelligence is represented by mental age as compared to chronological age 

• IQ = mental age / chronological age x 100 

What is meant by the Normed assessment? 

• Test norms

• Standard of normal performance expressed as avg scores + range around avg 

• Based on large, representative sample 

Explain standard deviation in the context of intelligence, specifically giftedness and intellectual disability

• SD ⇒ measure of cluster of scores around mean

• 95% have scores from 70~130 (within 2 SD from mean)

• Giftedness ⇒ <3% with scores of 130 or above

  • identified in early childhood according to the Fullerton Longitudinal Study (as early as 18 m/o)

  • curious and motivated to learn, advanced language skills

• Intellectual disability ⇒ <3% with scores of 70 or below

  • (called Intellectual Development Disorder, not necessarily mental)

  • limitations in areas of adaptive behaviours such as self-care and social skills

  • range from mild-moderate-severe-profound

  • causes: biological (Down syndrome, Williams syndrome), prenatal risk factors (alcohol consumption, rubella exposure)

What are the two common assessment tools of intelligence? 

• Binet’s test ⇒ Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale (calculation of IQ based on this) 

• Wechsler Scales (has diff version for diff ages → preschool - school children - adults) - is more commonly used 

What are three main theories of intelligence?

• Cattel-Horn-Carroll (CHC) theory

• Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences

• Sternberg’s triarchic theory (theory of successful intelligence)

Explain the Cattel-Horn-Carroll (CHC) theory of intelligence

• 2 separate theories combined tgt

  • Cattel-Horn ⇒ fluid & crystallised intelligence

  • Carroll ⇒ hierarchical structure - general, broad abilities, and narrow bands of abilities

• Matter of which elements should be included in intelligence tests - selection of which test is most representative of broad band of ability is based on empirical data

Limitations to psychometric approach?

• Other talents/forms of giftedness not addressed by psychometric approach 

  • e.g. emotional intelligence, giftedness in other domains like visual/performing arts

Explain Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences 

• addresses limitations to psychometric approach (considers other forms of talent/giftedness) 

• rejects IQ scores (single numerical value) as measure of human intelligence 

• proposed at least 8 different aspects/domains of intelligence (e.g. spatial, musical, intrapersonal, linguistic, kinaesthetic etc) 

• Savant syndrome ⇒ phenomenon in which extraordinary talent in particular area is displayed by person otherwise intellectually challenged 

• Prodigy ⇒ children who display ability levels comparable to adult professionals 

Explain Stenberg’s triarchic theory

• Intelligence arises from combination of three components:

  • analytical intelligence - thinking critically, e.g. planning, eval, analysing

  • practical intelligence - adapting and solving problems in everyday life, e.g. adapting to env, shaping env (less explored in CHC)

  • creative intelligence - effectively dealing with novel problems, e.g. discovering, imagining

• optimisation of strengths and minimisation of weaknesses

What is meant by creativity? 

• ability to produce novel responses appropriate in context and valued by others 

Does IQ and creativity correlate?

• No ⇒ some correlation but not strong (Plucker et al 2020)
  + Jauk et al (2013) found that after a threshold intelligence is not correlated with creativity, but instead personality factors are more predictive for creativity

• Intelligence and creativity tends to be correlated at lower end of intelligence

• IQ tests measure convergent thinking & creativity measures divergent thinking

  • divergent thinking has three dimensions: originality, flexibility of thinking, ideational fluency 

  • use of divergent thinking to assess creativity = psychometric (doesn’t consider multitude of factors that contribute to creativity)

What are the two theories of creativity?

• Componential Model of Creativity

• Sternberg’s Investment Theory

Explain the Componential Model of Creativity theory of creativity

• comprehensive model of the social and psychological components necessary for an individual to produce creative work

• Four components necessary for creative response:

  • domain relevant skills (expertise) ⇒ level of knowledge before capacity can be explored, technical procedural intellectual knowledge

  • creative thinking skills ⇒ imaginativeness in approaches

  • motivation ⇒ intrinsic motivation

  • ^ three components within the individual

  • + social environment

Explain Sternberg’s Investment Theory of creativity

• notion that creativity is a decision & that creative people decide to buy low (generate ideas that defy the crowd) and sell high (move on to next unpopular idea)

• creativity emerges from confluence of six distinct but interrelated resources: knowledge, styles of thinking, personality, motivation, env, intellectual abilities

How would an infant’s intelligence be measured? (2 ans.)

• Bayley Scales of Infant Development

• Marrill-Palmer-Revised Scales of Development (MPR)

Explain the Bayley Scales of Infant Development

• Development Quotient (DQ) calculated

• Measures how well/poorly infant performs in comparison with a large norm group

• Performance measured across five areas:

  • Cognition (e.g. attention, memory, exploration, concept formation)

  • Language

  • Motor (fine and gross)

  • Social-emotional (e.g. self regulation)

  • Adaptive behaviour (e.g. listening and understanding, relating to others, playing)

Explain the Marrill-Palmer-Revised Scales of Development (MPR) 

• provides global assessment with separate scores for each IDEA domain (govt. assigned domains) 

• Same five domains as Bayley Scales  

What factor in an infant predicts later intelligence in a child?

• Infant DQ (Bayley scores) and child IQ ⇒ low correlation (as they measure diff kinds of abilities)

• Info processing may have better prediction

  • Info processing ⇒ attention, reaction time, speed of habituation, preference for novelty over familiarity 

  • avg correlation of around 0.45 

By what age is the relationship between early and later IQ established?

• 4 y/o 

• IQ may fluctuate throughout course of childhood but is relatively stable

• IQ can be influenced by: motivation, testing procedures, conditions - other than intelligence  

What causes fluctuations in IQ scores during childhood?

• home env (↑ instability in home env, ↑ fluctuation)

• ↑ in IQ have parents who: converse more with them, expose them to more vocab, offer more encouragement

• ↓ in IQ often occur to children in poverty, as it effects: health and nutrition, safety of env, stress levels, parental supportiveness, opportunities for cognitive stimulation (direct impact on brain dev)

What are the effects of a child living in poverty in IQ scores? What hypothesis supports this?

• avg of 10~20 points below middle-class cohorts

• Cumulative-deficit Hypothesis ⇒ impoverished env inhibits intellectual growth, and negative effects accumulate over time 

  • study with rats: develop less neurons, less connections, less glial cells 

• Intellectual stimulation of home env assessed by Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment inventory  

Preschool-aged children display high levels of _________________, which increases until the ______ grade and declines after the ________ grade. Those who score higher on the personality trait of ______________ and __________ are more likely to show creativity. 

• divergent thought

• third grade

• fifth grade

• openness to experience

• intrinsic motivation

Which “effect” describes the phenomenon by which average IQ scores increased over the 20th century? Why does this increase in IQ occur? (4 ans)

• The Flynn Effect

• Possible rationales

  • children are better educated today

  • improved nutrition and living conditions

  • increased familiarity w standardised testing

  • healthier env

What is the reverse Flynn effect and what are the possible causes? (6 ans)

• Trends in cohort IQ actually decreasing recently

• migration

• decline in educational values

• worse education system

• worse health and nutrition standards

• less intellectually stimulating env (e.g. TV and social media)

• poorer env (air pollution)

• in cases of IQ scores by country

  • associated w incidence and prevalence of infectious diseases, esp parasitic diseases (Eppig et al., 2010) 

Why are IQ tests still used/valued? Do they accurately measure the type of intelligence needed/used in the modern world?

• IQ test is one of the best predictors of school achievement 

• correlations bw children & adolescent’s IQ scores and grades range from 0.50 - 0.86 

• however, IQ scores do not predict college grades as well (personal qualities like motivation and habits matters more than intelligence at this stage)

What aspect of creativity is focused on/developed in middle school? What does this development depend on?

• Ability to elaborate on ideas

• dev of creativity depends on env pressure (e.g. to conform, punishing unusual answers) 

• developed/fostered through env that supports creativity (parents and schools influence) ⇒ freedom to explore, encourage idea generation, elaboration of ideas etc

Does IQ remain stable in later adulthood, and what may cause it to drop?

• remains relatively stable

• Can drop due to: poor health, diseases, drugs, unstimulating lifestyles 

  • e.g. elderly widows w low social status, few activity engagement, and dissatisfaction tend to have the most declines

What is the correlation between IQ and health? Why?

• ↑ intelligence tend to be (mentally + physically) healthier and live longer

  • higher IQ scores at 11 associated w lower levels of cardiovascular disease

• Rationale:

  • parental SES (resources, access to better healthcare)

  • genetics (Arden et al., 2016) - good health takes more than access to resources, knowledge of health also required in managing own health

What is the strongest predictor of intelligence & wisdom in old age?

• intelligence at age 11 (around middleschool)

  • declines in intellectual abilities are not universal

• wisom ⇒ not age - supportive social env 

What types of intelligence are maintained/improved and what type declines in later adulthood?

• Fluid intelligence declines (speed of processing, working memory - fluid processing) 

• Crystallised intelligence improves (esp. vocab)

• potentially linked to the slowing of central nervous system functioning 

What is the relationship between IQ and health? What are the possible rationales for this?

• people with ↑ IQ tend to be healthier and live longer

• why? ⇒ SES and ability to successfully monitor own health which requires intelligence

What are the patterns of creativity in later adulthood?

• creativity ↑ from 20~40s

• peak time of creativity differs for fields (e.g. humanities - peak is 60, arts - peak in 30/40s)

  • likely due to artistic creativity depending on fluid/innovative thinking + people in 30/40s have both enthusiasm and experience

• creative production begins to ↓ - people exhaust creative potential over time 

What are the 2 factors that affect intelligence (IQ scores) over the lifespan?

• genes and env 

  • identical twins have more similar IQ than fraternal twins & IQ of adopted children correlate w those of biological parents > adoptive parents 

  • heritability of IQ scores approx 0.5

  • mother’s IQ is reliably associated with childrens’

  • genes and env get combined that allow children w particular genetic makeup to display high intelligence under favourable env conditions

• race and ethnicity - culture

  • bias in tests, motivational factors, genetic diff, env diff, stereotype threat

Describe the relationship of genetic influence and intelligence

• greater genetic influence on intelligence among indv from enriched SES - opportunities for genetic influence to be expressed (limited to samples in US though) 

• in countries where healthcare available to all, genetic influences evident across all SES 

In what ways do env factors (parents and the home) influence children’s intellectual development?

• SES and risk factors

  • which risk factor less important than how many risk factor

• on avg, children from lower SES’s IQ is one standard dev lower than peers

• cumulative-deficit hypothesis ⇒ impoverished inhibit intellectual growth and negative effects accumulate over time

• parental involvement & opportunities for (responsive) stimulation

• home env ⇒ Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment (HOME) Inventory

  • can predict IQ at age 3 w correlation of 0.50

What are the influences of poverty on intelligence development & would happen if socioeconomic conditions were to improve?

• persistent vs episodic poverty - substantial negative impact of persistent poverty on cog dev. even experience of episodic poverty continues to show negative impacts 

• brain has neuroplasticity - responsive to changes in env 

• increases in IQ are much larger among children adopted into affluent homes 

• however early disadv of poverty may not be alleviated by improvement in SES 

Integrating cognitive perspectives, how is intelligence development explained?

• Piaget: stage of cognitive development, modes of thought change with age

• Vygotsky: culturally transmitted modes of thinking and interactions w others

• Information-processing: changes in hardware (speed of neural transmission) and software (strategies)

• Psychometric approach: distinct, measurable mental abilities