INTELLIGENCE AND ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT

INTELLIGENCE

INTELLIGENCE AS A SINGLE TRAIT

Almost all intellectual task

performance is positively
correlated

Each individual possesses a certain amount of g (general

intelligence)
This part of intelligence is common to all intellectual tasks

INTELLIGENCE AS A FEW BASIC ABILITIES

The simplest such view holds that there

are two types of intelligence. (Cattell,
1987)
Crystallized intelligence
Fluid intelligence

INTELLIGENCE AS A FEW BASIC ABILITIES

A more differentiated view proposes 7

primary mental abilities:
Word fluency, verbal meaning,
reasoning, spatial visualization,
numbering, rote memory, and
perceptual speed (Thurstone, 1938)

CARROLLS THREE-STRATUM THEORY OF INTELLIGENCE

MEASURING INTELLIGENCE

Measures of intelligence must be based on observable

behavior.
Intelligence tests measure somewhat different aspects of
intelligence in children of different ages.

THE INTELLIGENCE QUOTIENT (IQ)

The overall quantitative measure of child's intelligence relative

to that of other children.

IQ scores for large, representative groups of children of a given
age fall into a normal distribution.
IQs at different ages are easy to compare.

A NORMAL DISTRIBUTION WITH STANDARD DEVIATIONS AND

IQ SCORES

CONTINUITY OF IQ SCORES

Measurement of same children's IQ scores at different ages

have shown continuity from age 5 onward.

More closely correlated when closer in time; more stable at older

ages
Influenced by parent and child characteristics

IQ SCORES AS PREDICTORS OF IMPORTANT OUTCOMES

IQ is a strong predictor of academic, economic, and

occupational success.
A child's IQ is more closely related to their later occupational
success than is socioeconomic status, school attended, or any
other variable that has been studied.
Motivation, creativity, health, social skills, and other factors are
also important influences on success.

PATRICK BENNETT / CORBIS

GENES, ENVIRONMENT, AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF

INTELLIGENCE: QUALITIES OF THE CHILD

Children contribute to their own intellectual development.

Genetic endowment
Reactions elicited from other people and their choice of

environments

QUALITIES OF THE CHILD: GENETIC CONTRIBUTIONS TO

INTELLIGENCE
Genes have a substantial

influence on intelligence.
The genetic contribution to
intelligence is greater in older
children than younger ones.
Some genetic processes do

not impact IQ until later

childhood and adolescence.

QUALITIES OF THE CHILD: GENOTYPE-ENVIRONMENT

INTERACTIONS

Children are partially influenced by their genotype.

Sandra Scarr (1992):
Evocative effects
Active effects

INFLUENCE OF THE IMMEDIATE ENVIRONMENT: FAMILY

INFLUENCES

GENES, ENVIRONMENT, AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF

INTELLIGENCE: INFLUENCES OF SCHOOLING

Attending school makes children smarter:

Average IQ and achievement test scores rise during the academic
year and drop during the summer.
Additional evidence supports the inference that most children
would have higher levels of intellectual achievement if they went
to school for more days each year.

GENES, ENVIRONMENT, AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF

INTELLIGENCE: INFLUENCE OF SOCIETY

Flynn effect
Average IQ scores in many countries have consistently risen over
the past 80 years
Gene pool has not risen appreciably; IQ scores increase must be
due to societal changes

GENES, ENVIRONMENT, AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF

INTELLIGENCE: EFFECTS OF POVERTY

Adequacy of family income for meeting family needs is related

to children's IQ
The more years children spend in poverty, the lower their IQs
tend to be
Poverty can exert negative effects on intellectual development
in numerous ways, including factors associated with nutrition,
health care, intellectual stimulation, and emotional support

GENES, ENVIRONMENT, AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF

INTELLIGENCE: PROGRAMS FOR HELPING POOR CHILDREN

Many home- and center-based intervention programs were

initiated in the 1960s to enhance the intellectual development

of poor children.
Program participation was linked to reduced rates of school

failure and special-education placement, higher rates of high

school graduation, and higher earnings as adults

HEAD START
Head Start has provided a

range of services to more than

25 million children for 50 years.
At present, Head Start serves
more than 900,000 3- to 5year-olds each year in the U.S.
Long-term results are
consistent with those of other
early intervention programs

BLACK INTELLIGENCE TEST OF CULTURAL HOMOGENEITY

A culture specific test that was developed by Dr. Robert

Williams in 1972
Designed to address the issue of racial bias embodied in
traditional standardized norm referenced IQ tests
Wanted to demonstrate that differences in experience equals

variations in test scores

Challenge scores that are a result of subjective cultural references
and measures of ones familiarity with the White middle class
cultural value system

CULTURAL BIAS AND INTELLIGENCE TESTS

A highly controversial issue

Nonverbal intelligence tests