Psychology - Chapter: Intelligence Study Notes

COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY

• Reflects on the fascination with the process of human thought through various artistic works:
  • 19th-century Girl with a Book by José Ferraz de Almeida Júnior
  • 20th-century sculpture The Thinker by August Rodin
  • 10th-century painting Huike Thinking by Shi Ke
• Cognition is defined as thinking, encompassing processes such as:
  • Perception
  • Knowledge
  • Problem-solving
  • Judgement
  • Language
  • Memory

COGNITION

• Cognition processes involve:
  • Reception of sensations and information by our brains
  • Filtering through emotions and memories
  • Processing into thoughts and behaviors

CONCEPTS & PROTOTYPES

• Prototype: The best example or representation of a concept.
  • E.g. Mahatma Gandhi as a prototype for the category of civil disobedience.
• Concepts: Categories of linguistic information, images, ideas, or memories that help us see relationships among different elements of experience.
  • Can be complex (e.g., justice) or concrete (e.g., types of birds).

NATURAL & ARTIFICIAL CONCEPTS

• Natural Concepts: Developed through direct or indirect experience.
  • E.g., our concept of snow.
• Artificial Concepts: Defined by specific characteristics.
  • E.g., properties of geometric shapes (squares, triangles).

SCHEMATA

• Schema: A mental construct consisting of related concepts.
  • When activated, prompts automatic assumptions about a person, object, or situation.
• Role Schema: Assumptions about behavior in specific roles (e.g., what to expect from a librarian).
• Event Schema (Cognitive Script): Routine or automatic behaviors that vary across cultures and dictate behavior, making habits hard to break.
  • E.g., standing facing the door in an elevator.

EVENT SCHEMA

• Event schemas are automatic and hard to change.
  • Example: Picking up a phone to reply to a text can be a dangerous automatic reaction while driving.
  • Research indicates that regular checking of phones increases the likelihood of picking it up while driving.

LANGUAGE

• Language: A communication system utilizing words and systematic rules to convey information.
  • Components of Language:
  • Lexicon: The words of a given language.
  • Grammar: The rules used to convey meaning with the lexicon.
  • Phoneme: The basic sound unit (e.g., ah, eh).
  • Morphemes: The smallest units of language that convey meaning.
  • Semantics: Meaning derived from morphemes and words.
  • Syntax: The organization of words into sentences.

LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT

• Noam Chomsky proposed that language acquisition mechanisms are biologically determined and develop without formal instruction.
  • Language development patterns are similar across different cultures.
• Critical period: Optimal time early in life for acquiring language; deprivation affects the ability to learn.
  • The Case of Genie: A case study that illustrates the effects of language deprivation during the critical period. Genie was found at age 13 with virtually no exposure to language or social interaction.
  • Though she could learn vocabulary, she struggled with grammatical aspects of language.

STAGES OF LANGUAGE AND COMMUNICATION DEVELOPMENT

PROBLEM SOLVING STRATEGIES

• Trial and Error: Continue trying different solutions until the problem is solved.
• Algorithm: A step-by-step problem-solving formula.
• Heuristic: A general problem-solving framework that includes:
  • Shortcuts
  • “Rule of thumb”
  • Working backwards
  • Breaking tasks into smaller steps
• Heuristics are used when:
  • Facing too much information
  • Time is limited
  • The decision is unimportant
  • Limited information is accessible
  • An appropriate heuristic comes to mind.

PUZZLES - SUDOKU & SPATIAL REASONING

• Puzzles like Sudoku help improve problem-solving abilities.
  • Example: Sudoku grid with numbers filled in.
• SPATIAL REASONING PUZZLE: Connect all nine dots with four straight lines without lifting the pencil.

PITFALLS TO PROBLEM SOLVING

• Functional Fixedness: Inability to use an object for something other than its intended purpose.
  • Example: Using a box to hold a candle on the wall instead of thinking of it in its normal function.
  • Quote by Albert Einstein: “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.”
• Mental Sets: Persistence in using a prior solution approach when it is no longer effective.

BIASES

• Knowledge and reasoning can be swayed by biases:
  • Anchoring Bias: Focusing on one piece of information in decision making.
  • Confirmation Bias: Seeking information that supports existing beliefs.
  • Hindsight Bias: Perception that an event was predictable after it occurred.
  • Representative Bias: Unintentional stereotyping.
  • Availability Heuristic: Making decisions based on readily available examples/information.

CLASSIFYING INTELLIGENCE

• Intelligence: Defined in various ways by psychologists.
• Charles Spearman: Proposed intelligence consists of one general factor, called g, focusing on commonalities among intellectual abilities.
• Raymond Cattell: Divided intelligence into two components:
  • Crystalized Intelligence: Acquired knowledge and retrieval ability (knowing facts).
  • Fluid Intelligence: Capacity to see complex relationships and solve problems (knowing how to do something).

TRIARCHIC THEORY OF INTELLIGENCE

• Robert Sternberg’s Theory identifies three types of intelligence:
  • Analytical Intelligence: Academic problem-solving and computation.
  • Creative Intelligence: Imaginative and innovative problem solving.
  • Practical Intelligence: Street smarts and common sense.

MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES THEORY

• Howard Gardner proposed at least eight intelligences:
  1. Linguistic
  2. Logical-mathematical
  3. Musical
  4. Bodily kinesthetic
  5. Spatial
  6. Interpersonal
  7. Intrapersonal
  8. Naturalist
• Emotional intelligence combines interpersonal and intrapersonal intelligences.
  • Emotional Intelligence: Ability to understand oneself and others' emotions, show empathy, and respond appropriately in a social context.

CREATIVITY

• Creativity: Ability to generate, create, or discover new ideas.
  • Attributes of creative people include:
  • Intense knowledge in a domain.
  • Years of work and effort.
  • Seeking novel solutions.
  • Consulting with experts.
  • Willingness to take risks.
• Divergent Thinking: Thinking outside the box, important when multiple possibilities exist.
• Convergent Thinking: Ability to supply a correct or well-established answer to a problem.

MEASURES OF INTELLIGENCE

• Intelligence Quotient (IQ): Score from standardized tests to measure intelligence.
• The Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale: Developed by Alfred Binet for children, later modified by Louis Terman (Stanford psychologist) for standardization.
  • Standardization: Ensuring consistent administration, scoring, and interpretation of results.
  • Norming: Testing a large population to establish comparative scores.

ALFRED BINET

• Alfred Binet was instrumental in developing intelligence testing methodologies.
  • Shown through the 1908 version of the Binet-Simon Intelligence Scale.
  • Included tasks like determining which face in a pair was prettier.

WECHSLER ADULT INTELLIGENCE SCALE (WAIS)

• Developed by David Wechsler in 1939, combining various subtests from other intelligence tests.
• Focuses on verbal and nonverbal skills and is widely used in various settings.
• Modern versions, like WISC-V, assess areas of intelligence:
  1. Verbal comprehension
  2. Visual spatial
  3. Fluid reasoning
  4. Working memory
  5. Processing speed
• Flynn Effect: Observes that each generation's IQ is significantly higher than the previous one.

THE BELL CURVE

• Intelligence test results typically distribute normally, following a bell curve pattern.
• A representative sample must accurately reflect the general population for valid testing.

IQ BELL CURVE

• Average IQ score is 100 with a standard deviation of 15.
  • A score of 85 is one standard deviation below the mean.
  • Approximately 82% of the population scores between 85 and 115.

THE SOURCE OF INTELLIGENCE

• Nature vs. Nurture Debate:
  • Nature Perspective: Intelligence is inherited.
  • Evidenced by twin studies showing higher correlation of IQ among identical twins.
  • Nurture Perspective: Intelligence shaped by environmental factors; stimulating environments lead to higher intelligence in children.
  • Range of Reaction Theory: Unique responses to environments based on genetic makeup affect IQ potential.

GENETICS AND IQ

• Comparisons of IQs of related versus unrelated individuals (raised together or apart) suggest IQ has a genetic component.

LEARNING DISABILITIES

• Learning disabilities affect specific cognitive functions, mainly language and reading, and are neurological impairments rather than intellectual limitations.
• Common disabilities include:
  • Dysgraphia: Difficulty writing legibly, often struggling to express thoughts in writing.
  • Dyslexia: The inability to process letters correctly, most common in children, sometimes leading to letter reversals in words and sentences.