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Psychology & Psychiatry
October 29, 2008

What is Intelligence?

By Jared Tanner, MS | 8 Comments | Share | Print | Email | Tweet | Like | 1+

Intelligence has been discussed throughout much of human history. Socrates gave one definition of intelligence: “I know that I am intelligent, because I know that I know nothing.” Intelligence over the years has been defined as such diverse things as understanding others, knowledge gained, who you surround yourself by, what you accomplish, and the ability to reason. Before the 19th century, intelligence was solely in the realm of philosophy. Franz Joseph Gall, who started the phrenology movement, sought to localize intelligence (among other things) in the brain, which was in turn measured on the skull. While many of the ideas of phrenology were inaccurate, the idea of quantifying individual differences and localizing those differences onto the brain was an important one. Over the years, researchers started using better methods of research and understanding individual differences.

Then in the early 20th century, a French researcher was asked by the French government to come up with a way to identify children who would and would not benefit from schooling. He developed the first modern intelligence test. This first intelligence test quantified attention, verbal skills, and memory. About 10 years later, Lewis Terman, a psychologist at Stanford, adapted it for use in the United States. These tests provided an Intelligence Quotient as the quantification of intelligence. It was quickly applied by the military to identify who would make good officers an who should be rejected from service. Charles Spearman, an English psychologist, developed the idea that many disparate components of intelligence all represented an underlying general factor of intelligence (g). This had a large impact on the idea of intelligence and on the development of future measures of intelligence.

LightbulbDavid Wechsler developed an intelligence test, largely based on Spearman’s idea of g; this test is the most widely used intelligence test in the United States. The most recent version measures verbal comprehension, perceptual reasoning, working memory, and processing speed. There is considerable controversy whether processing speed — which roughly is how quickly someone can perceive and process new information or perform an action — should be considered a measure of intelligence. Other people balk at assigning a single number to intelligence, especially when there is not a universally agreed upon definition of intelligence. Still others feel that traditional intelligence tests provide a too narrow view of intelligence. One such researcher, Howard Gardner, initially proposed that there are seven intelligences (this has since been modified to include at least two more), including bodily-kinesthetic, linguistic, interpersonal, visual-spatial, and so forth. A problem with his theory is that his intelligences are not easily measured (however, some people would not see this as a fault).

What do the readers think about intelligence? Do IQ tests provide a good measure of intelligence? In other words, is it a meaningful concept? Does Gardner’s theory fit better? Is intelligence even a useful concept to measure? Was Oscar Wilde correct when he said, “The intellect is not a serious thing, and never has been. It is an instrument on which one plays, that is all”?

Jared Tanner, MS

Mr. Tanner has an M.S. degree in psychology and is currently a PhD candidate in clinical psychology with an emphasis in neuropsychology. His interests are mainly neuroimaging and neuroanatomy. He spends his research time looking at the structure of gray and white matter in the brains of people with Parkinson's disease. With a focus on neuropsychology, he is also interested in how normal and abnormal brain structure relates to cognitive and behavioral functioning.

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8 Responses

  1. Chandrika says:
    March 21, 2010 at 10:44 am

    Thanks, got the meaning of INTELLIGENCE/IQ.

    Reply
  2. Florene Lipskar says:
    December 16, 2010 at 9:09 am

    Well I definitely enjoyed reading it. This subject provided by you is very effective for proper planning.

    Reply
  3. onergk69 says:
    December 28, 2011 at 9:26 am

    Traditional GIQ consists oofverbal, mathematical & problem solving applications. We can map it in humans on the so-called “Bell Curve”, which ranges from profound retardation to ultra GIQ. The highest on record is 228.

    IQ is clearly a complex construct. I think H. Gardner is correct in IDing at least 8 IQ dimensions.

    GIQ correlates about 0.6 with post-secondary performance; and shows a correlation of 0.4 with professional success. So, clearly, there are othr important mediating factors.

    In re: to retardation, 80% that we find in the world, is due to psychosocial deprivation! Dendrites do not proliferate without plenty of stimulation.

    All in all, I find it to be an important aspect of the human experience.

    Rich

    Reply
  1. Rich Life Carnival says:
    October 31, 2008 at 10:31 pm

    Rich Life Carnival #17…

    Welcome to rich life carnival #17, Halloween Edition. This week we have less submissions. I’m pretty sure it has to do with the recent outages over at blogcarnival.com. Hopefully it won’t happen again, because putting together…

    Reply
  2. Carnival of Postive Thinking says:
    November 2, 2008 at 11:42 am

    [...] Blogger presents What is Intelligence? posted at Brain Blogger, saying, “Intelligence has been discussed throughout much of human [...]

    Reply
  3. » Blog Archive » Blog Carnival - eleventh edition says:
    November 2, 2008 at 10:51 pm

    [...] Blogger presents What is Intelligence? posted at Brain Blogger. Intelligence has been discussed throughout much of human history. Socrates [...]

    Reply
  4. Encephalon #58 - Decision Making | Highlight HEALTH says:
    November 10, 2008 at 10:50 am

    [...] Before the localization of cognitive functions to specific neural regions of the brain, intelligence was the subject of philosophers. Jared Tanner briefly reviews the history, asking What is Intelligence? [...]

    Reply
  5. Why Some Human Brains Become Leaders, While Others Followers | Brain Blogger says:
    April 5, 2010 at 7:51 am

    [...] Human intelligence is reflective in nature. Reflection is the ability of the brain to consciously manipulate the given information and rehearse options prior to action. When guessing well is the game and pressure is on the brain, people who display reflective intelligence and foresight in thought and action, have distinct advantage as leaders. Such people have higher survival instinct and more mindful disposition. The brain of such people spontaneously responds to problems and obstacles by retrieving and contemplating information which is relevant to action options. Journal writing, meditation, case study analysis and investigative learning enhance reflective intelligence by many folds. People with leadership qualities have been found to be doing these activities more often than others who remain followers. [...]

    Reply

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