Advanced Progressive Matrices Test Research Articles

Acute aerobic exercise and creative thinking: comparison of transient hypofrontality state and strength model of self-controls’ theoretical predictions

Creativity is a high-level cognitive activity that can" be affected by acute aerobic exercise. This paper aims to determine how acute aerobic exercise intensities may influence aspects of divergent and convergent creative thinking. In this regard, to give an insight into the results, the predictions of the transient hypofrontality thesis and the strength model of self-control have been taken into consideration. Ninety-three healthy male college students (age = 21.18 ±1.73 years) were randomly assigned to anaerobic threshold intensity (%85 HRmax, n = 31), low intensity (%60 HRmax, n = 31), and control (n = 31) groups Participants performed divergent (Alternate Uses Task) and convergent (Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices Test) creative thinking tasks before, during, and after cessation of two anaerobic thresholds and low intensities and control conditions. For the divergent creative thinking, flexibility and fluency performances during and after cessation of exercise in anaerobic threshold and low-intensity groups were improved in comparison to the control group.These results were consistent with the transient hypofrontality thesis and inconsistent with the strength model of self-control pre-dictions. In contrast, the performance of convergent creative thinking was relatively stable during and after cessation of exercise in anaerobic threshold and low-intensity groups which was inconsistent with both the transient hypofrontality thesis and the strength model of self-control predictions. The findings suggest that theoretical predictions of transient hypofrontality thesis are more adaptable with literature than the strength model of self-control to consider the exercise-creative processes relationship and further study of the issue would be of interest. Key words: Cognition, Convergent, Creativity, Divergent, Self-depletion, Physical Activity

Comparison of spatial and non-verbal reasoning abilities in veterinarians in the fields of radiology and surgery.

Spatial ability tests measure capacity for mentally understanding and interpreting three-dimensional images. Such skills have been found to be predictive for anatomical learning success and proficiency in human and veterinary medical students. Veterinarians in the radiology and surgery field develop high levels of three-dimensional topographic anatomic understanding through exposure to anatomy portions of the veterinary curriculum, followed by highly specialized residency programs. Validated testing tools were used to compare spatial and general non-verbal reasoning abilities in veterinarians in the field of radiology (radiology group, RG) and veterinarians in the field of surgery (surgery group, SG). These tests were: Guay's Visualization of Views Test: Adapted Version (GVVT), the Mental Rotation Test (MRT), and Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices Test, short form (APMT). Results showed a significant difference for GVVT scores in favor of the RG (15.2 ± 0.3 and 12.3 ± 0.4, respectively, p < 0.05). There were no significant differences in scores for MRT and APMT between the RG and SG. There was a significant positive correlation between spatial ability tests scores and general non-verbal reasoning test scores for the RG but not for the SG. Future studies are planned to determine if the RG innately possess high spatial and reasoning skills, and to expand the present findings to other veterinary specialty areas.

Predictors of academic success among undergraduate medical programs: The roles of divergent and convergent thinking

Over the past two decades, researchers in the medical field have attempted to predict academic success in undergraduate medical programs. Existing literature indicates that factors such as metacognitive awareness, motivation, and emotional intelligence predict academic success among Doctor of Medicine (MD) students. However, the impact of divergent thinking (DT) and convergent thinking (CT) on MD students’ academic success remains uncertain. Moreover, most definitions and theories of giftedness focus on K-12 education, leaving a knowledge gap regarding gifted post-secondary learners, particularly in specialized fields like medicine. The present study aimed to bridge this gap by investigating the role of DT and CT in predicting academic success among 84 gifted post-secondary MD learners. Three assessments were administered: (a) Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices Test, (b) the Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal (WG-III), and (c) the Alternative Uses Test. Cluster analysis revealed a distinct three-cluster solution. Correlational and multiple regression analyses showed that the originality dimension of DT and the Drawing Conclusions and Recognizing Assumptions subscales of the WG-III were significantly associated with and predictive of the academic success of gifted undergraduate MD students. Notably, IQ was not significantly correlated with students’ grade point average. Recommendations for future research are also discussed.

Cognitive basis of cyberbullying and computer addiction in adolescence

Introduction. Modern information technologies are now very important part of the development of children and adolescents. The process of child socialization is associated with the risks of colliding with manifestations of aggression on the Internet and the development of computer addiction. The article reveals the issues of the relationship of these risks with the characteristics of the cognitive development of adolescents.Materials and Methods. The empirical study was conducted to study the relationship between the cognitive characteristics of adolescents and indicators of Internet addiction, cyber aggression and cyber victimization. The sample included 105 teenagers aged 13-17. The following methods were used: “Intelligence Structure Test” (IST) by R. Amthauer, the Raven’s Advanced Progressive Matrices Test, Chen Internet Addiction Scale (CIAS), the Hall’s Emotional Quotient Test, Russianlanguage analogue of the questionnaire “Cyberbullying and Online Aggression Survey” (J.W.Patchin, S.Hinduja).Results. The study revealed negative correlations between indicators of problematic Internet use and characteristics of the cognitive sphere. There are differences in the severity of key symptoms of Internet addiction in adolescents with different levels of intelligence. Indicators of emotional intelligence are negatively correlated with almost all indicators of computer addiction, cyberaggression and cybervictimism.Discussion and Conclusions. The results of the study indicate that reduced indicators of general and emotional intelligence create the basis for the formation of Internet addiction and increase the vulnerability of adolescents to manifestations of cyberbullying.

Types of Overexcitability in Intellectually Gifted Adolescent Students in Slovakia

The aim of the study was the comparison of intellectually gifted secondary grammar school students with students from the average population of secondary grammar school students, in the level of overexcitability and prediction of intellectual giftedness through the various types of overexcitability. The research sample consisted of 88 secondary grammar school students aged 16-17 years. The target group, who were identified as intellectually gifted students, consisted of 44 students, whereas the control group consisted of 44 students from an average population of secondary grammar school students. We used tests of intellectual ability, Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices Test, Intelligence Structure Analysis, and Urban's Figural Test of Creative Thinking to identify intellectually gifted secondary grammar school students. Types of overexcitability were assessed by means of the Overexcitability Questionnaire. Statistical analysis showed significant differences in the level of overexcitabilities between intellectually gifted secondary grammar school students and students from the average population of secondary grammar school students. Significant predictive power of intellectual and emotional overexcitability was found in relation to intellectual giftedness.

Process differences as a function of test modifications: Construct validity of Raven's advanced progressive matrices under standard, abbreviated and/or speeded conditions – A meta-analysis

Historically, there has been substantial disagreement about the importance of speed vs. level in determining individual differences in intelligence – a disagreement that persists across various different modern assessment measures of intellectual abilities. The current investigation considers whether changes to the administration constraints (time limitations or speededness, and total test length) of the Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices test – which has been identified as a measure highly saturated with general intelligence – results in differences to the underlying ability determinants of test performance. A review of empirical studies was conducted, where versions of Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices Tests were administered under various time constraints and item lengths. Meta-analytic techniques were used to determine whether introducing speed constraints or shortening the length of the test changes the construct validity of the tests (as indicated by differences in convergent and discriminant correlations with other ability traits). The meta-analysis combined results from 142 studies composed of a total of 26,848 participants. Substantial differences were found for correlations of Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices and Spatial Visualization (as large as ρ̂ = 0.26), Memory (as large as ρ̂ = 0.08), and Perceptual Speed (as large as ρ̂ = 0.34) abilities under speeded conditions and shorter test lengths. Examinees may draw on different strategies for test performance, that in turn, draw on different combinations of abilities, when the test is abbreviated or significant time constraints are introduced. Implications for using this test under different conditions are discussed.

Психолого-педагогические условия интеллектуального развития дошкольников с тяжелыми нарушениями речи

The research featured peculiarities of the intellectual development of children with severe speech disorders. A set of experiments showed that such children have systemic underdevelopment of verbal and non-verbal functions. The empirical part of the research was based on two methods: a color version of Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices Test and Wechsler’s Pre-School &amp; Primary Scale of Intelligence in M. N. Ilyina’s adaptation. The data were analyzed with the help of statistical methods. The article focuses on the system of psychological and pedagogical conditions of the intellectual development of preschoolers in the conditions of preschool educational organizations. The authors consider the sensory education as the basis of intellectual development aimed primarily at the development of feelings and perceptions. The content of the intellectual education includes speech development, development of elementary mathematical concepts, and productive activities (construction, modeling, drawing, application), which are considered as significant aspects of intellectual education. The authors compiled, tested, and evaluated a program of intellectual development of senior preschool children with severe speech disorders. The program was based on didactic games.

Improvement of Spatial and Non-verbal General Reasoning Abilities in Female Veterinary Medical Students Over the First 64 Weeks of an Integrated Curriculum.

Spatial visualization ability is defined as the ability to mentally rotate two- and three-dimensional figures. Visual reasoning is the ability to manipulate mental images of an object to reach a certain conclusion and has been linked to spatial ability. There is currently limited information about how entry-level spatial and visual reasoning abilities may be enhanced with progression through the rigorous veterinary medical curriculum. The present study made use of two tests that measure spatial ability and one test that measures non-verbal general reasoning ability in female veterinary students: Guay's Visualization of Views Test, Adapted Version (VVT), Mental Rotations Test (MRT), and Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices Test, short form (APMT). Tests were given immediately before commencing the integrated veterinary medical curriculum (T0), at week 32 (T1), and at week 64 (T2) into the program. Results showed improved spatial visualization ability as measured by VVT and MRT and improved non-verbal general reasoning ability as measured by APMT at both 32 and 64 weeks. The spatial ability scores measured by VVT and MRT showed a positive correlation with non-verbal general reasoning ability scores (APMT), supporting the idea that these abilities are linked.

Improvement of spatial and non‐verbal general reasoning abilities in female veterinary medical students

Spatial visualization ability refers to the human cognitive ability to form, retrieve and manipulate mental models of spatial nature. Visual reasoning ability has been linked to spatial ability. There is currently limited information about how entry‐level spatial and visual reasoning abilities may predict veterinary anatomy performance or may be enhanced with progression through the veterinary anatomy content in an integrated curriculum. The present study made use of two tests that measure spatial ability, and one test that measures non‐verbal general reasoning ability in female veterinary students: Guay's visualization of views test, adapted version (VVT), mental rotations test (MRT), and Raven's advanced progressive matrices test, short form (APMT). Tests were given to female veterinary medical students immediately before commencing the integrated veterinary medical curriculum (T0), at week 32 (T1) and, at week 64 (T2) into the program.Results showed that first‐year female veterinary medical students exposed to an integrated curriculum for 64 weeks improved their spatial visualization ability as measured by VVT and MRT. A long‐term improvement of their non‐verbal general reasoning ability as measured by APMT was also observed. Spatial ability scores measured by VVT and MRT showed a long‐term positive correlation with non‐verbal general reasoning ability scores (APMT) establishing that these abilities are linked.This abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2019 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal.

Entry-Level Spatial and General Non-verbal Reasoning: Can These Abilities be Used as a Predictor for Anatomy Performance in Veterinary Medical Students?

There is currently limited available information, but growing interest, in possible relationships between spatial visualization skills in medical students and their academic performance in select areas of the curriculum such as radiographic interpretation and anatomy. There is very limited comparable information on how entry-level spatial visualization skills may correlate with macroscopic anatomy performance in veterinary medical students exposed to an integrated curriculum. The present study made use of a battery of two short tests that measure spatial ability: Guay's visualization of views test (VVT) and mental rotation test (MRT) and, one test that measures general non-verbal reasoning abilities: Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices Test, short form (APMT). Tests were given to 1st-year veterinary medical students (n = 124) immediately before commencing the integrated veterinary medical curriculum. Results show there is a positive correlation between entry-level spatial ability and non-verbal general reasoning scores confirming these abilities are linked (r: +0.22 and +0.3 for VVT/APMT and MRT/APMT respectively). The dispersion and inconsistency of significant positive correlation between anatomy practical exams grade and spatial and general reasoning scores suggest these abilities either do not correlate with anatomy practical exams grade or, are overcome with progression through the anatomy courses. Males scored higher than females in the spatial ability tests: 16.59 vs. 12.06 for VVT (p = 0.01) and 19.0 vs. 14.68 for MRT (p = 0.01). Scores for APMT did not show a significant difference by gender.

Investigating the impact of innate dexterity skills and visuospatial aptitude on the performance of baseline laparoscopic skills in veterinary students.

To determine if manual dexterity and visuospatial skills can be used to predict baseline laparoscopic surgery skills in veterinary students. Pilot study. Veterinary students (n = 45) from years 1-4 volunteered for this study. An hour-long electronic questionnaire was completed by participants. The first section was used to collect demographics and information about prior nonsurgical experiences. The second section included 3 tests of visuospatial skills, including the Purdue Visualization of Rotations Test, Mental Rotations Test, and Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices Test. Multiple tests were administered to assess innate dexterity, including the grooved pegboard test, indirect and direct zigzag tracking tests, and the 3Dconnexion proficiency test. Each dexterity test was performed once with the left hand and once with the right hand. The order of task performance was randomized. Basic laparoscopic skills were assessed using the validated fundamentals of laparoscopic surgery (FLS) peg transfer task. There was an association between left-handed grooved pegboard scores (95% CI -10046.36 to -1636.53, P-value = .008) and left-handed indirect zigzag tracking task (95% CI -35.78 to -8.20, P-value = .003) with FLS peg transfer scores. Individuals who reported playing videogames achieved higher scores on the FLS peg transfer task than those without videogame experience (95% CI 583.59 to 3509.97, P-value = .007). The results of this study suggest that dexterity was a better predictor of baseline laparoscopic skills than visuospatial skills in veterinary students.

Spatial and Visual Reasoning: Do These Abilities Improve in First-Year Veterinary Medical Students Exposed to an Integrated Curriculum?

Spatial visualization ability refers to the human cognitive ability to form, retrieve, and manipulate mental models of spatial nature. Visual reasoning ability has been linked to spatial ability. There is currently limited information about how entry-level spatial and visual reasoning abilities may predict veterinary anatomy performance or may be enhanced with progression through the veterinary anatomy content in an integrated curriculum. The present study made use of two tests that measure spatial ability and one test that measures visual reasoning ability in veterinary students: Guay's Visualization of Views Test, adapted version (GVVT), the Mental Rotations Test (MRT), and Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices Test, short form (RavenT). The tests were given to the entering class of veterinary students during their orientation week and at week 32 in the veterinary medical curriculum. Mean score on the MRT significantly increased from 15.2 to 20.1, and on the RavenT significantly increased from 7.5 to 8.8. When females only were evaluated, results were similar to the total class outcome; however, all three tests showed significant increases in mean scores. A positive correlation between the pre- and post-test scores was found for all three tests. The present results should be considered preliminary at best for associating anatomic learning in an integrated curriculum with spatial and visual reasoning abilities. Other components of the curriculum, for instance histology or physiology, could also influence the improved spatial visualization and visual reasoning test scores at week 32.

More is not Always Better: The Relation between Item Response and Item Response Time in Raven’s Matrices

The role of response time in completing an item can have very different interpretations. Responding more slowly could be positively related to success as the item is answered more carefully. However, the association may be negative if working faster indicates higher ability. The objective of this study was to clarify the validity of each assumption for reasoning items considering the mode of processing. A total of 230 persons completed a computerized version of Raven’s Advanced Progressive Matrices test. Results revealed that response time overall had a negative effect. However, this effect was moderated by items and persons. For easy items and able persons the effect was strongly negative, for difficult items and less able persons it was less negative or even positive. The number of rules involved in a matrix problem proved to explain item difficulty significantly. Most importantly, a positive interaction effect between the number of rules and item response time indicated that the response time effect became less negative with an increasing number of rules. Moreover, exploratory analyses suggested that the error type influenced the response time effect.

Cognitive ability and epistemic rationality: A study in Nigeria and Germany

Based on a Piagetian cognitive epistemology approach, this study investigated cognitive ability levels and their relation to thinking patterns in Nigeria and Germany (NNi=29–47 and NGe=52–70). 12 selected items of the Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices test (APM) and a self-designed questionnaire measuring epistemic rationality (e.g. dealing with health issues, traffic and nature) were administered. The sample was of above-average education. The APM scores were 89.13 for the Nigerian and 111.33 IQ points (Greenwich IQ) for the German subsample (dcorr=1.48, dIQ=22; corrected for education the estimated country IQs would be IQNi=77 and IQGe=99). APM and epistemic rationality correlated r=.61 (attenuated: rττ=.71; N=81). The mean difference in rationality was dcorr=1.85. Comparisons with other studies and everyday behavior suggest that the mean test differences reflect true differences in cognitive ability and epistemic rationality. Cross-country effects were larger than individual effects indicating a strong impact of macro-social factors (partialling out country, the intelligence–epistemic rationality correlation decreases from r=.61 to rp=.27). Consequences for a Piagetian based epistemic rationality theory are discussed.

Development and validity of a Dutch version of the Remote Associates Task: An item-response theory approach

The Remote Associates Test (RAT) developed by Mednick and Mednick (1967) is known as a valid measure of creative convergent thinking. We developed a 30-item version of the RAT in Dutch with high internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha=0.85) and applied both Classical Test Theory and Item Response Theory (IRT) to provide measures of item difficulty and discriminability, construct validity, and reliability. IRT was further used to construct a shorter version of the RAT, which comprises of 22 items but still shows good reliability and validity—as revealed by its relation to Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices test, another insight-problem test, and Guilford's Alternative Uses Test.

A novel method for analyzing sequential eye movements reveals strategic influence on Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices

Eye movements are an important data source in vision science. However, the vast majority of eye movement studies ignore sequential information in the data and utilize only first-order statistics. Here, we present a novel application of a temporal-difference learning algorithm to construct a scanpath successor representation (SR; P. Dayan, 1993) that captures statistical regularities in temporally extended eye movement sequences. We demonstrate the effectiveness of the scanpath SR on eye movement data from participants solving items from Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices Test. Analysis of the SRs revealed individual differences in scanning patterns captured by two principal components that predicted individual Raven scores much better than existing methods. These scanpath SR components were highly interpretable and provided new insight into the role of strategic processing on the Raven test. The success of the scanpath SR in terms of prediction and interpretability suggests that this method could prove useful in a much broader context.

The sleep slow oscillation in the human EEG and its relation to general cognitive abilities

Event Abstract Back to Event The sleep slow oscillation in the human EEG and its relation to general cognitive abilities Dominik P. Heib1*, Kerstin Hoedlmoser1, Hermann Griessenberger1, Wolfgang Klimesch2 and Manuel Schabus1 1 Lab for Sleep&Consciousness, Univ. of Salzburg, Germany 2 Oscillations, Brain & Thinking Laboratory, Univ. of Salzburg, Germany There is growing evidence for an active involvement of sleep on memory consolidation. Especially sleep spindles and slow oscillations (< 1 Hz) appear to play a crucial role in the process of declarative memory consolidation. In addition, there is convincing evidence that sleep spindles are related to general cognitive abilities because they are reflecting key properties of neuronal networks. The purpose of the present study was to investigate if also frontocortically generated slow oscillations during sleep are related to general cognitive abilities and may reflect the cognitive capacity of frontocortical networks. 24 subjects aged between 20 and 30 years participate in a randomized, within-subject, multicenter study. Subjects slept three times for a whole night in the sleep laboratory with complete polysomnography. Whereas the first night only served for adaptation purposes, the two remaining nights were preceded by an explicit word-pair task or by a non learning control task. Subjects were divided in two groups based on their “IQ” results in the Raven’s Advanced Progressive Matrices Test (APM- and APM+). APM+ show more slow oscillations in N3 than APM- (t20= -2.21; p < .05). Also the amplitude of these slow oscillations were higher in APM+ compared to APM- (neg. peak-amplitude: t21= -3.02; p < .01, pos. peak-amplitude: t22= -2.37; p < .05). Interestingly we also could find a strong correlation between the intensity of sleep spindles in N2 and the number of slow oscillations in N2 for APM+ (r9= .81; p < .01) but not for APM- (r13= .01; p = .98). Individuals who are able to orchestrate their frontocortical slow oscillations with their thalamocortical spindle activity during sleep are more likely to perform well on cognitive reasoning tasks. Keywords: EEG, memory and learning Conference: XI International Conference on Cognitive Neuroscience (ICON XI), Palma, Mallorca, Spain, 25 Sep - 29 Sep, 2011. Presentation Type: Poster Presentation Topic: Poster Sessions: Neural Bases of Memory and Learning Citation: Heib DP, Hoedlmoser K, Griessenberger H, Klimesch W and Schabus M (2011). The sleep slow oscillation in the human EEG and its relation to general cognitive abilities. Conference Abstract: XI International Conference on Cognitive Neuroscience (ICON XI). doi: 10.3389/conf.fnhum.2011.207.00204 Copyright: The abstracts in this collection have not been subject to any Frontiers peer review or checks, and are not endorsed by Frontiers. They are made available through the Frontiers publishing platform as a service to conference organizers and presenters. The copyright in the individual abstracts is owned by the author of each abstract or his/her employer unless otherwise stated. Each abstract, as well as the collection of abstracts, are published under a Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 (attribution) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and may thus be reproduced, translated, adapted and be the subject of derivative works provided the authors and Frontiers are attributed. For Frontiers’ terms and conditions please see https://www.frontiersin.org/legal/terms-and-conditions. Received: 21 Nov 2011; Published Online: 28 Nov 2011. * Correspondence: Mr. Dominik P Heib, Lab for Sleep&Consciousness, Univ. of Salzburg, Salzburg, Germany, dominik.heib@sbg.ac.at Login Required This action requires you to be registered with Frontiers and logged in. To register or login click here. Abstract Info Abstract The Authors in Frontiers Dominik P Heib Kerstin Hoedlmoser Hermann Griessenberger Wolfgang Klimesch Manuel Schabus Google Dominik P Heib Kerstin Hoedlmoser Hermann Griessenberger Wolfgang Klimesch Manuel Schabus Google Scholar Dominik P Heib Kerstin Hoedlmoser Hermann Griessenberger Wolfgang Klimesch Manuel Schabus PubMed Dominik P Heib Kerstin Hoedlmoser Hermann Griessenberger Wolfgang Klimesch Manuel Schabus Related Article in Frontiers Google Scholar PubMed Abstract Close Back to top Javascript is disabled. Please enable Javascript in your browser settings in order to see all the content on this page.

Eye-movement analysis demonstrates strategic influences on intelligence

Taking into account various models and findings pertaining to the nature of analogical reasoning, this study explored quantitative and qualitative individual differences in intelligence using latency and eye-movement data. Fifty-five university students were administered 14 selected items of the Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices test. Results showed that individuals differed in terms of speed, but also in terms of differences in strategies. More specifically, higher and lower ability subjects differed in terms of their patterns of item and matrix inspections, and several strategic indices (proportional time on matrix, number of alternations between matrix and response choice, latency to first alternation, matrix time distribution) emerged in regression analyses as significant predictors of Raven performance. Given the high reliabilities associated with these strategic indices, it is argued that these results provide evidence against a strong basic-information-processing view and supports a multifaceted view of individual differences in intelligence that includes differences in strategies.

Socioeconomic Status and Intelligence: Why Test Scores Do Not Equal Merit

ABSTRACT Students from low socioeconomic backgrounds perform worse on standardized tests than other students. Two experiments investigated whether the testing situation per se contributes to the relationship between social class and intellectual achievement. In study 1, students from low or high social class took a GRE-like test that was described either as diagnostic or not of intellectual ability. When described as a measure of intellectual ability, low socioeconomic status (SES) participants performed worse than high SES participants. However, when the identical test was presented as nondiagnostic of intellectual ability, low SES participants scored as high as their SES peers. Study 2 extended this finding to an IQ-like test, the Advanced Progressive Matrices Test. The implications of these results with regards to the meaning of the relationship between social class and test scores are discussed.

When intelligence loses its impact: neural efficiency during reasoning in a familiar area

Several studies have revealed that persons with a lower IQ show more cortical activity when solving intelligence-related tasks than more intelligent persons do. Such results are interpreted in terms of neural efficiency: the more intelligent a person is, the fewer mental resources have to be activated. In an experiment with 31 experienced taxi drivers of varying IQs (measured by Raven's advanced progressive matrices test), we investigated cortical activation by measuring the amount of event-related desynchronization in the electroencephalogram during a familiar task (thinking about routes to take in their city) and a novel task (memorizing routes of an artificial map). A comparison of participants with lower and higher IQs (median split) revealed higher cortical activation in the less intelligent group for the novel task, but not for the familiar task. These results suggest that long-term experience can compensate for lower intellectual ability, even at the level of cortical activation.