INTELLIGENCE

B Y H U M A P E R VA I Z
• SO, what did you get on your SATs? Jane said she
got a 1350…that means she’s really smart, right?
Does it?
 Think on Your Own…
How do YOU define Intelligence?
 Is it the ability to use reason and logic?
Is it the ability to write and speak clearly?
Is it limited to one’s performance in school?
Is it behavior in social situations?
How about knowing when you’re wrong?
HOW DO WE KNOW INTELLIGENCE EVEN EXISTS?

Psychometricians specialize in measuring

psychological characteristics for intelligence and
personality. By using patterns of test scores, they have
found evidence for general intelligence as well as for
specific abilities
WHAT IS INTELLIGENCE?

• Intelligence is “the capacity to acquire and apply knowledge.”

Intelligence includes the ability to benefit from past experience, act
purposefully, solve problems, and adapt to new situations.
Intelligence can also be defined as “the ability that intelligence tests
measure.”
MOREOVER, INTELLIGENCE IS..

• The mental ability that enable one to adapt to, shape, or

select one’s environment
• The ability to judge, comprehend, and reason
• The ability to understand and deal with people, objects,
and symbols
• The ability to act purposefully, think rationally, and deal
effectively with the environment
THEORIES OF
INTELLIGENCE
• FA C T O R T H E O R Y
• F L U I D A N D C R Y S TA L L I Z E D
INTELLIGENCE
• G A R D N E R ’ S M U LT I P L E
INTELLIGENCES
FACTOR THEORY
• Spearman’s Two-Factor Theory
The English psychologist, Charles Spearman (1863-1945), in
1904 proposed his theory of intelligence called two-factor theory.
According to him intellectual abilities are comprised of two
factors, namely; the general ability known as G-factor and
specific Abilities known as S-factors.

According to Spearman (1904) all intelligent abilities have an

area of overlap, which he called “g” for general ability. Each
ability also depends partly on an “s” factor for specific ability.
According to Spearman… the “g” factor is the dominant ability
when doing tasks. The “s” factors are the lesser abilities.
• G-Factor: When a score is calculated and averaged across abilities, a
general intelligence factor is established. It is meant to represent how generally
intelligent you are based on your performance on this type of intelligence test.

• S-Factor: Commonly measured s-factors of intelligence include memory,

attention and concentration, verbal comprehension, vocabulary, spatial skills,
and abstract reasoning.
• Characteristics of ‘G’ Factor:
• It is universal inborn ability.
• It is general mental energy.
• It is constant.
• The amount of ‘g’ differs from individual to individual.
• It is used in every activity of life.
• Greater the ‘g’ in an individual, greater is his success in life.
• Characteristics of ‘S’ Factor:
• It is learned and acquired in the environment.
• It varies from activity to activity in the same individual.
• Individuals differ in the amount of ‘S’ ability.
 CATTELL’S VIEW OF INTELLIGENCE -
INTELLIGENCE AS A FEW BASIC
ABILITIES
• Psychologists continue to divide general intelligence into specific
factors. The Cattell-Horn-Carroll Theory of Cognitive Abilities (CHC
Theory) proposes that “g” is comprised of multiple cognitive abilities
that when taken as a whole produce “g.”
• This theory comprises 2 important types of intelligence:
1. Fluid intelligence
2. Crystallized intelligence
Fluid Intelligence
– The ability to think on the spot and solve novel problems
• The ability to perceive relationships
• The ability to gain new types of knowledge

• Fluid intelligence encompasses the ability to reason abstractly. If we were

asked to solve an analogy, group a series of letters according to some
criterion, or remember a set of numbers, we would be using fluid
intelligence.
• We use fluid intelligence when we’re trying to rapidly solve a puzzle
It is not influenced by education, formal training, culture and
• Crystallized Intelligence
–Factual knowledge about the world
• The skills already learned and practiced
• Examples
–Arithmetic facts
–Knowledge of the meaning of words
–State capitals
• Crystalized intelligence
– It reflects our ability to call up information from long-term memory.
– The accumulation of information, skills, and strategies that are learned through
experience and can be applied in problem-solving situations.
– We would be likely to rely on crystallized intelligence, for instance, if we were asked
to participate in a discussion about the solution to the causes of poverty, a task that
allows us to draw on our own past experiences and knowledge of the world.
– In contrast to fluid intelligence, which reflects a more general kind of intelligence,
crystallized intelligence is more a reflection of the culture in which a person is raised.
It is influenced by culture, education and formal learning and training
• The researcher suggest that crystallized intelligence peaks later in life
might be due to the fact that people today have more education,
greater access to information, and more mentally demanding jobs
than did previous generations of adults.
• The results suggest that while older brains might indeed be slower,
they are likely to still be more accurate, knowledgeable, and better
able to assess the moods and emotional states of others.
• The researchers are continuing their online research by
introducing more cognitive tasks as well as tests designed
to measure language abilities, executive function, and
social and emotional intelligence. They also agree that
further investigations are needed to determine exactly why
mental powers peak at different ages.
GARDNER THEORY OF
INTELLIGENCE
• The theory of multiple intelligences was developed in 1983 by Dr.
Howard Gardner, professor of education at Harvard University.
• It suggests that the traditional notion of intelligence, based on I.Q.
testing, is far too limited.
• Instead, Dr. Gardner proposes eight different intelligences to
account for a broader range of human potential in children and
adults.
Linguistics - sensitivity to the meanings and sounds of
words, mastery of syntax, appreciation of the ways language
can be used

Logical-Mathematical - Understanding of objects and

symbols and of actions that be performed on them and of the
relations between these actions, ability to identify problems
and seek explanations

Spatial - capacity to perceive the visual world accurately, to

perform transformations upon perceptions and to re-create
aspects of visual experience in the absence of physical stimuli
• Musical - Sensitivity to individual tones and phrases of music, an
understanding of ways to combine tones and phrases into larger
musical rhythms and structures, awareness of emotional aspects of
music

• Bodily-Kinesthetic - Use of one’s body in highly skilled ways for

expressive or goal-directed purposes, capacity to handle objects
skillfully

• Interpersonal - Ability to notice and make distinctions among the

moods, temperaments, motivations, and intentions of other people
and potentially to act on this knowledge
• Intrapersonal - access to one’s own feelings, ability to
draw on one’s emotions to guide and understand one’s
behavior, recognition of personal strengths and weaknesses

• Naturalistic -- sensitivity and understanding of plants,

animals, and other aspects of nature
• Dr. Gardner says that our schools and culture focus most of their
attention on linguistic and logical-mathematical intelligence. We
esteem the highly articulate or logical people of our culture.
• However, Dr. Gardner says that we should also place equal
attention on individuals who show gifts in the other intelligences:
the artists, architects, musicians, naturalists, designers, dancers,
therapists, entrepreneurs, and others who enrich the world in
which we live.
• Unfortunately, many children who have these gifts don’t receive
much reinforcement for them in school. Many of these kids, in
fact, end up being labeled “learning disabled.”
The theory of multiple intelligences gives adults a whole new way to
look at their lives, examining potentials that they left behind in their
childhood (such as a love for art or drama) but now have the
opportunity to develop through courses, hobbies, or other programs of
self-development.