Differences In Intellectual Ability Research Articles

Manifestations of intelligence: Expanding the measurement space to reconsider specific cognitive abilities

Individual differences in intellectual abilities are arguably more important than ever for success in the constantly changing and increasingly complex modern business world. Historically, attention has been focused on the general cognitive ability factor at the center of the intelligence nexus (i.e., the ‘g’ factor). Although the focus on ‘g’ has and continues to provide insight into successful behavior in the workplace, there is interest and need to expand the measurement space to include other aspects of the intelligence nexus. Drawing on examples in the differential and educational literatures, we argue that giving attention to constellations of more specific cognitive aptitudes can provide additional insight into the manifestation of the complex skills and competencies that are required for success in today's workplace. Unfortunately, as I-O psychology has pulled away from the study of mental abilities, the effort to increase the measurement space has spawned an increase in construct proliferation (e.g., competency-based constructs such as decision-making, strategic thinking, etc.) that crowds and confuses the construct domain without properly leveraging what is known about specific mental abilities. Thus, our purpose is to encourage I-O psychology to reconnect with the science of mental abilities and measurement theory so as better understand how basic constructs within the intelligence nexus manifest in the context of work.

교사들이 가지는 사람의 행동적 특징에 대한 유전자 결정론적 인식

유전자 결정론은 유전자가 인간의 생물학적인 특성 뿐 아니라 사회적인 특성까지도 결정한다고 보는 철학적 견해이다. 그럼에도 불구하고 여전히 일반대중과 생명과학자들이 유전자 결정론을 주장하곤 한다. 클레몽의 KVP모델에 의하면(Cl<TEX>$\acute{e}$</TEX>ment & Carvalho, 2007; Cast<TEX>$\acute{e}$</TEX>ra & Cl<TEX>$\acute{e}$</TEX>ment, 2012) 과학교육에서 교사들의 유전자 결정론은 학생들의 유전에 대한 개념 형성에 영향을 준다. 본 연구에서는 우리나라 교사들이 가지고 있는 유전자 결정론에 대한 인식을 조사하였다. 이를 위해 선행연구(Cast<TEX>$\acute{e}$</TEX>ra & Cl<TEX>$\acute{e}$</TEX>ment, 2012)의 설문지를 번역하여 생명과학, 국어 및 초등학교의 예비교사 151명, 현직교사 157명의 총 308명을 대상으로 설문 조사를 실시하였다. 응답결과에 대해 요인분석을 활용하여 주요 요인들을 추출하였으며 일원분산분석을 실시하여 교사 집단별 요인들의 차이를 분석하였다. 요인분석 결과 4개의 요인이 추출되었는데, 요인1은 남녀의 차이가 유전적으로 결정된다고 보는 관점, 요인2는 개인의 지적능력이 유전적으로 결정된다고 보는 관점, 요인3은 개인의 면역작용과 행동적 특징이 유전적으로 결정된다고 보는 관점이었으며, 요인4는 민족의 특징이 유전적으로 결정된다고 보는 관점이었다. 이 네 가지 요인에 대한 전공교과 집단별 인식 차이를 분석한 일원분산분석 결과 요인1(F=3.325, p=.006), 요인3(F=3.320, p=.006), 요인4(F=4.325, p=.001)에서 유의한 차이를 나타냈다. 사후 비교를 한 결과 생명과학 교사와 다른 교사들 사이에 유의한 차이는 없었다. 현직교사와 예비교사로 구분하여 분석한 결과, 요인1(t=-3.938, p=.000)과 요인4(t=-3.121, p=.002)에서 유의한 차이가 나타났는데 예비교사보다 현직교사가 더 유전자 결정론적 인식이 강했다. 네 요인에 대한 교사들의 종교별 차이를 분석한 결과에서는 유의한 차이가 나타나지 않았다. Genetic determinism of human behaviors is considered as a philosophical perspective that genes in humans determine biological as well as social traits. However, many biologists agree that human traits are determined by interactions between genes and genes, as well as between genes and environments. In this context, genetic determinism still affect ideas of the general public as well as research directions of biologists. According to Cl<TEX>$\acute{e}$</TEX>ment's KVP model (Cast<TEX>$\acute{e}$</TEX>ra & Cl<TEX>$\acute{e}$</TEX>ment, 2012), teachers' conceptions of genetic determinism influence students' concepts of genetics. This study intends to investigate teachers' conceptions on genetic determinism of human behaviors. For this end, a questionnaire adopted from a previous research (Cast<TEX>$\acute{e}$</TEX>ra & Cl<TEX>$\acute{e}$</TEX>ment, 2012) has been administered to 308 teachers including 151 pre-service and 157 in-service. Factor analysis has been conducted to extract major factors and one-way ANOVA has been employed to find out differences in extracted factors among different groups of teachers. Four factors have been extracted from 14 items of questionnaire, including factor 1, a perspective of genetic determinism of gender differences in intellectual ability, social status, and emotional traits; factor 2, a perspective of genetic determinism of individual differences in intellectual ability; factor 3, a perspective of genetic determinism of individual differences in biological immune function and behavioral trait; and factor 4, a perspective of genetic determinism of ethnic differences. From the results of One-way ANOVA among teacher groups on four factors, first, it has shown a significant difference in factor 1 (F=3.325, p=.006), factor 3 (F=3.320, p=.006) and factor 4 (F=4.325, p=.001) due to their subject matters. In post-hoc comparison there have been no significant difference between biology teachers and other teachers. It has also been found that there was a significant difference between pre-service and in-service teachers in factor 1 (t=-3.938, p=.000) and factor 4 (t=-3.121, p=.002) and in-service teachers are more genetic deterministic than pre-service teachers. Finally, different religions have no influence on teachers' conceptions of genetic determinism of human behaviors.

Reassessment of Jewish Cognitive Ability: Within Group Analyses Based on Parental Fluency in Hebrew or Yiddish

The most influential study on the differences in intellectual ability between Jews and gentiles may be Backman’s (1972) analysis of group differences in intellectual ability using the Project Talent data. However, inspection of the study, and the Project Talent data file on which the study is based, suggested that further analyses could be conducted that may be useful in shedding light on Jewish intellectual achievement. The most significant change from the original analysis was the use of parental fluency in Hebrew or Yiddish as a variable allowing for within group analyses. Analyses using this variable showed that as fluency increased so did general intelligence and scores on individual tests, with the exception of tests of spatial visualization and mechanical reasoning. For other European languages parental fluency was inversely associated with general intelligence. Results also showed that rates of myopia were positively associated with parental fluency in Hebrew or Yiddish, yet negatively associated with parental fluency in other European languages. General intelligence and individual test scores, with the exceptions of tests of spatial visualization and mechanical reasoning, were higher in individuals with myopia; for both Jews and gentiles. The results suggest that parental fluency in Hebrew or Yiddish is a valid measure Jewish within group differences and further research using the measure and the Project Talent data file is prescribed.

Tract-Based Spatial Statistics Reveal Altered Relationship Between Non-verbal Reasoning Abilities and White Matter Integrity in Autism Spectrum Disorder

Altered brain connectivity accompanies autism spectrum disorders (ASD), but the relationship between connectivity and intellectual abilities, which often differs within ASD, and between ASD and typically developing (TD) children, is not understood. Here, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) was used to explore the relationship between white matter integrity and non-verbal intelligence quotients (IQ) in children with ASD and in age- and gender-matched TD children. Tract-based spatial statistical analyses (TBSS) of DTI fractional anisotropy (FA) revealed altered relationships between white matter and IQ. Different relationships were found using within-group analyses, where regions of significant (p < .05, corrected) correlations in ASD overlapped minimally with regions of FA-IQ correlations in TD subjects. An additional between-groups analysis revealed significant correlation differences in widespread cortical and subcortical areas. These preliminary findings suggest altered brain connectivity may underlie some differences in intellectual abilities of ASD, and should be investigated further in larger samples as a function of development.

Dutch children at family risk of dyslexia: precursors, reading development, and parental effects

The study concerns reading development and its precursors in a transparent orthography. Dutch children differing in family risk for dyslexia were followed from kindergarten through fifth grade. In fifth grade, at-risk dyslexic (n = 22), at-risk non-dyslexic (n = 45), and control children (n = 12) were distinguished. In kindergarten, the at-risk non-dyslexics performed better than the at-risk dyslexics, but worse than the controls on letter-knowledge and rapid naming. The groups did not differ on phonological awareness. At-risk dyslexics read less fluently from first grade onwards than the other groups. At-risk non-dyslexics' reading fluency was at an intermediate position between the other groups at the start of reading. By fifth grade they had reached a similar level as the controls on word reading, but still lagged behind on pseudoword reading. Results further showed that the parents of the groups of at-risk children differed in educational level and reading skills. Overall, the groups of at-risk children differed on pre-reading skills as well as on reading development. These differences do not seem to stem from differences in intellectual abilities or literacy environment. Instead, the better reading skills of parents of at-risk non-dyslexics suggest that these children might have a lower genetic liability.

Analysis of school failure based on Portuguese micro data

In this article we investigate the main causes of school failure in the primary public schools in Lisbon. Poisson count-data models are used to analyse the relationship between the number of failures and a wide set of explanatory variables. However heterogeneity due to unobserved differences in intellectual abilities of the students is of primary concern. Neglecting it causes biased estimates and therefore a proper method is required to accommodate it. In this article we suggest a finite mixture of Poisson's. We found that variables associated to gender, ethnicity, family dimension, parent's level of education and income poverty are the most important observable determinants of school failure.

Why are (the best) women so good at chess? Participation rates and gender differences in intellectual domains

A popular explanation for the small number of women at the top level of intellectually demanding activities from chess to science appeals to biological differences in the intellectual abilities of men and women. An alternative explanation is that the extreme values in a large sample are likely to be greater than those in a small one. Although the performance of the 100 best German male chess players is better than that of the 100 best German women, we show that 96 per cent of the observed difference would be expected given the much greater number of men who play chess. There is little left for biological or cultural explanations to account for. In science, where there are many more male than female participants, this statistical sampling explanation, rather than differences in intellectual ability, may also be the main reason why women are under-represented at the top end.

A Comparison of Behavioral and Emotional Functioning in Children and Adolescents with Autistic Disorder and PDD-NOS

Behavioral symptomatology was compared in 26 children and adolescents with Autistic Disorder (“autism”) and 25 children and adolescents with Pervasive Developmental Disorder, Not Otherwise Specified (“PDD-NOS”). Relative to individuals with PDD-NOS, those with autism had more symptoms of depression, social withdrawal, atypical behavior, and immature social skills—and fewer family problems. These differences remained even when group differences in intellectual ability were statistically controlled. No group differences emerged in somatization, anxiety, or hyperactivity. Findings suggest that although both groups demonstrate considerable evidence of behavioral and emotional problems, those with autism are at particularly high risk for comorbid behavioral and emotional disabilities.

Temperament and social behaviour at home and school among typically developing children and children with an intellectually disability

There has been limited research on differences in temperament between typically developing children and children with an intellectual disability (ID). Individual differences have generally been neglected in previous investigations of children with an ID. The present research investigated differences in temperament and social behaviour between typically developing children and children with an ID, in both home and school settings. Participants were 100 children (M = 10.7 years, SD = 0.88) from both regular and special education schools. Temperament was measured using the Emotionality, Activity, Sociability (EAS) Temperament Survey for Children (parental and teacher ratings), while social behaviour was measured using the School Social Behaviour Scales, Second Edition (SSBS-2) and the Home and Community Social Behaviour Scales (HCSBS). There were minimal significant differences in temperament between the regular and special education groups. Children who attended regular schools had a significantly higher level of social competence and significantly lower level of antisocial behaviour both at home and school, when compared with children who attended special schools. The difference in social behaviour between children attending regular and special schools was attributed to the difference in intellectual ability of the two groups, as well as contextual influences of regular or special school environments.

Intellectual functioning in adults with ADHD: A meta-analytic examination of full scale IQ differences between adults with and without ADHD.

Although attention has been given to the intellectual functioning of children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) relative to their non-ADHD peers, few studies have examined intellectual functioning in adults with ADHD. The purpose of the current investigation was to examine differences in intellectual ability between adults with and without ADHD via a meta-analytic review. Of the 33 studies meeting inclusion criteria, primary analyses focused on 18 studies representing 1,031 adults with ADHD and 928 non-ADHD, nonclinical comparison adults and containing Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS; D. Wechsler, 1955, 1981, 1994) Full Scale IQ scores or estimates. A significant effect was found such that adults with ADHD scored lower than non-ADHD adults on WAIS intelligence tests. However, this difference was small and not clinically meaningful. The presence of several moderators reflecting characteristics of the ADHD samples and study methodology suggested that only a subset of adults with ADHD (e.g., those with comorbid disorders) may experience lower general intellectual ability relative to non-ADHD comparison adults. Implications of the findings for clinical and research settings are presented as well as suggestions for improving methodology and reporting in future research.

Psychosis, psychopathy, and homicide: a preliminary neuropsychological inquiry.

This study attempted to statistically distinguish subgroups of murderers with mental disorders from among 26 hospitalized men (mean age=34 years) who were committed to a maximum security forensic hospital. Measures consisted of objective ratings of psychosis and psychopathy and neuropsychological tests of intelligence, memory and attention, executive functions, and academic abilities. Cluster analysis produced two distinct subgroups: one defined by high incidence of psychosis and low level of psychopathy and one by low incidence of psychosis and high level of psychopathy, each corresponding to distinct neuropsychological differences in intellectual abilities, learning disabilities, and social intelligence. In light of this relatively small, highly select group, these novel findings must be viewed as preliminary. Studies of larger cohorts are needed before definitive conclusions can be drawn as to the reliability of these two distinct symptom clusters, each independently validated by neuropsychological measures of intelligence, sociality, and academic abilities.

An Anthropological Perspective on "Race" and Intelligence: The Non-Clinal Nature of Human Cognitive Capabilities

Traits that are clinally distributed are under the control of selective forces that are distributed in graded fashion. Traits that cluster in certain regions are simply the results of relatedness and are not adaptively important. Traits that are of equal survival value for all human populations should show no average difference from one population to another. Human cognitive capacity, founded on the ability to learn a language, is of equal survival value to all human groups, and consequently there is no valid reason to expect that there should be average differences in intellectual ability among living human populations. The archaeological record shows that, at any one time during the Pleistocene, survival strategies were essentially the same throughout the entire range of human occupation. Both archaeological and biological data contribute to the picture of the slow emergence of human linguistic behavior and its subsequent maturation. The similarities in human capability were not the result of a sudden, ...

Extending the Concept of Stereotype Threat to Social Class: The Intellectual Underperformance of Students from Low Socioeconomic Backgrounds

Students from poorer families perform worse on intellectual tasks than do other students. The authors tested the stereotype threat hypothesis as a possible explanation for this difference. Students from relatively poor backgrounds, such as members of other stereotyped groups, risk confirming a negative reputation of low intellectual ability. The authors predicted that, on a stereotype-relevant test, members of this group would experience apprehension about confirming their negative reputation and that this susceptibility to the stereotype would impair their performance. The study varied stereotype threat by manipulating the instructions accompanying the test that each participant completed. When described as a measure of intellectual ability, low socioeconomic status (SES) participants performed worse than high SES participants. However, when the test was presented as nondiagnostic of intellectual ability, low SES participants' performances did not suffer, contesting claims of SES differences in intellectual ability.

Intelligence is not just mental speed.

It has long been known that people who have high scores on intelligence tests are also relatively fast at simple laboratory tests of ‘mental speed’ (Woodrow, cited in Woodworth, 1946). When first observed these correlations attracted little interest because, though ubiquitous, they are very modest, accounting for only 3–9% of variance between individuals (Sternberg, R. J., 1977). Correlations between intelligence test scores (TSs) and speed of performance on simple tasks were seen as less interesting than equally strong associations between TSs and performance on simple tests of memory and learning (Woodrow, 1938). The idea that intelligence can be defined as the capacity to learn new skills seemed a more fruitful guide to the development of individual differences in competence (Woodrow, 1946). Further, since scores on most intelligence tests represent the number of problems correctly solved within a time limit, it did not seem remarkable that people who can solve complex problems quickly should also be able to make simple decisions fast. Finally, evidence accumulated that, speed and accuracy of problem solving can be independent; for example, the times that individuals take to solve complex spatial problems do not predict their error-rates (Egan, 1978). Consequently mental speed was seen as only one of many different demands that solving intelligence test problems make on the cognitive system. Many distinguished investigators believe that better insights can be gained into the nature of individual differences in intellectual ability by studying correlations between TSs and performance on complex tasks that demand the encoding, organisation and transformation of information in working memory or successive stages in syllogism solution (e.g. Carpenter &amp; Just, 1989; Daneman &amp; Carpenter, 1980; Kyllonen &amp; Crystal, 1990; Necka, 1992; Sternberg, R. J., 1977).

Toward Meritocracy? Changing Social-Class Differences in Intellectual Ability

Many observers believe that intellectual ability has become a more important determinant of occupational success in recent decades and that social-class differences in ability have consequently increased. This article examines changes in occupational-class differences in scores on a test of verbal ability for people born between the late 19th century and the 1960s. Contrary to the usual view, class differences have become smaller among people born after about 1945; this development reflects changes in the quantity and the effects of education. Therefore, current social problems cannot be ascribed to an increasing concentration of low-ability people in the lower classes.

Auditory inspection time and intelligence: What is the direction of causation?

Inspection time (IT) is an index of speed of perceptual processing that correlates at moderate levels with tests of mental ability. A key issue has been the question of the direction of causation: is IT causal to individual differences in intellectual ability, or is a fast IT a consequence of having a high IQ? The direction of causation was assessed by administering auditory inspection time (AIT) tests and tests of verbal and nonverbal ability to 104 school children at age 1 1, and 2 years later at 13 years. Three competing structural equation models were tested by using the cross-lagged panel data: that AIT at age 11 causes later IQ; that IQ at age 11 causes later AIT; and that there is equal reciprocal causation. Various goodness-of-fit indexes indicated that the first model was the most acceptable. AIT accounted for about 6% of the variance in cognitive ability 2 years later

Co‐operative learning and adaptive instruction in a mathematics curriculum

The AGO 12 to 16 Project (the acronym AGO stands for the Dutch equivalent of 'Adaptive Instruction and Co-operative Learning') seeks to develop and evaluate a mathematics curriculum which is suitable for mixed-ability groups in secondary education. The research questions we will address here are, first, whether this curriculum is feasible and effective, and, second, what effects, if any, the context variables time and mean cognitive level of the class have on learning. Many mathematics programmes make insufficient allowance for the differences in intellectual ability that exist in mixed-ability classes. In order to change this situation we developed a mathematics curriculum with adaptive qualities. The evaluation of the experimental curriculum was carried out in two stages. During the first stage the curriculum was used at two schools with the aim of investigating the feasibility of the programme. Experience with the implementation of the programme led to some improvements in the experimental materials. By and large the AGO model appeared to be feasible in secondary classrooms. In the second stage, which was on a large scale, the focus was on the effectiveness of the programme. Six hundred students, 13 teachers and six schools were involved in the research. Teachers in the experimental group were trained in AGO methods and in implementing the new AGO curriculum. Teachers in the control groups worked with the existing programme following their usual methods of teaching. The main conclusion of the study is positive. The AGO model as a whole proved to be practical and effective in learning mathematics. The AGO model has a positive effect on the intercept, which means that the mean scores of AGO classes are higher than the mean scores of non-AGO classes. It may be concluded that, on the average, students benefit from learning in AGO classes as compared with non-AGO classes. AGO does not increase or decrease the differences between students in the same class. As expected, positive effects of two context variables were found: (1) the total amount of time spent in class covering the mathematical content and (2) class composition as indicated by the mean pretest score (aptitude) of the class.

Sex Differences in Variability in Intellectual Abilities: A New Look at an Old Controversy

Contemporary research on sex differences in intellectual abilities has focused on male-female differences in average performance, implicitly assuming homogeneity of variance. To examine the validity of that assumption, this article examined sex differences in variability on the national norms of several standardized test batteries. Males were consistently more variable than females in quantitative reasoning, spatial visualization, spelling, and general knowledge. Because these sex differences in variability were coupled with corresponding sex differences in means, it was demonstrated that sex differences in variability and sex differences in central tendency have to be considered together to form correct conclusions about the magnitude of cognitive gender differences.

Sex Differences in Variability in Intellectual Abilities: A New Look at an Old Controversy

Contemporary research on sex differences in intellectual abilities has focused on male-female differences in average performance, implicitly assuming homogeneity of variance. To examine the validity of that assumption, this article examined sex differences in variability on the national norms of several standardized test batteries. Males were consistently more variable than females in quantitative reasoning, spatial visualization, spelling, and general knowledge. Because these sex differences in variability were coupled with corresponding sex differences in means, it was demonstrated that sex differences in variability and sex differences in central tendency have to be considered together to form correct conclusions about the magnitude of cognitive gender differences.

Astronomy Education in Hungary

Our educational system, like that of any other country, has grown up to meet the needs of the environment in which it developed. Perhaps its most distinctive feature is its emphasis on education of the masses rather than on education of the intellectuals.The philosophy of the Hungarian educational system is that a democracy depends upon a well-informed electorate, and that therefore each citizen should receive the best education possible. As a result, in our country most children in the same community attend school together from kindergarten through secondary school practically regardless of differences in intellectual ability or in family background.