Abstract
This paper examined the effects of training in creative problem-solving on intelligence. We revisited Stankov’s report on the outcomes of an experiment carried out by R. Kvashchev in former Yugoslavia that reported an IQ increase of seven points, on average, across 28 tests of intelligence. We argue that previous analyses were based on a conservative analytic approach and failed to take into account the reductions in the IQ test variances at the end of the three-years’ training. When standard deviations of the initial test and 2nd retest were pooled in the calculation of the effect sizes, the experimental group’s performance was 10 IQ points higher on average than that of the control group. Further, with the properly defined measures of fluid and crystallized intelligence, the experimental group showed a 15 IQ points higher increase than the control group. We concluded that prolonged intensive training in creative problem-solving can lead to substantial and positive effects on intelligence during late adolescence (ages 18–19).
Highlights
For several decades, hereditarians have shaped our beliefs about the modifiability of intelligence.Jensen (1969) argued that the heritability estimate of intelligence is about 80% and that the role of the environment or schooling has to be small and perhaps negligible
Experimental group was, on average, 7 to 8 IQ points higher than the control group
It can be concluded that Stankov (1986) account of the effects of Kvashchev’s training in creative problem-solving on the general factor of intelligence may have been too conservative
Summary
Hereditarians have shaped our beliefs about the modifiability of intelligence.Jensen (1969) argued that the heritability estimate of intelligence is about 80% and that the role of the environment or schooling has to be small and perhaps negligible. The argument supported the claim that the effects of compensatory early education on preschool children tend to be low This led to an increased focus on IQ differences across racial/ethnic groups, and to the acceptance of the view that training of cognitive performance is likely to be ineffective. It is generally accepted that the heritability of intelligence increases from about 20% in infancy to perhaps 80% in later adulthood (Plomin et al 2014; Plomin and Deary 2015). This leaves plenty of room for environmental effects, especially within the school-aged populations
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