【Psychology and Life】Chapter 09 — Main Points
* All the following abstractions are excerpted from <Psychology and Life>, Richard J. Gerrig & Philip G. Zimbardo, 19th edition
Chapter 09 — Intelligence and Intelligence Assessment.
— What Is Assessment?
Psychological assessment has a long history, beginning in ancient China. Many important contributions were made by Sir Francis Galton.
A useful assessment tool must be reliable, valid, and standardized. A reliable measure gives consistent results. A valid measure assesses the attributes for which the test was designed.
A standardized test is always administered and scored in the same way; norms allow a person's score to be compared with the averages of others of the same age, sex, and culture.
— Intelligence Assessment
Binet began the tradition of objective intelligence testing in France in the early 1900s. Scores were give in terms of mental ages and were meant to represent children's current level of functioning.
In the United States, Terman created the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale and popularized the concept of IQ.
Wechsler designed intelligence tests for adults, children, and preschoolers.
The definitions of both intellectual disability and giftedness focus both on IQ scores and day-to-day performance.
— Theories of Intelligence
Psychometric analyses of IQ suggest that several basic abilities, such as fluid and crystallized aspects of intelligence, contribute to IQ scores.
Contemporary theories conceive of and measure intelligence very broadly by considering the skills and insights role use to solve the types of problems they encounter.
Sternberg differentiates analytical, creative, and practical aspects of intelligence.
Gardner identifies eight types of intelligence that both include and go beyond the types of intelligence assessed by standard IQ measures. Recent research has focused on emotional intelligence.
— The Politics of Intelligence
Almost from the outset, intelligence tests have been used to make negative claims about ethnic and racial groups.
Because of the reasonably high heritability of IQ, some researchers have attributed the lower scores of some racial and cultural groups to innate inferiority.
Environmental disadvantages and stereotype threat appear to explain the lower scores of certain groups. Research shows that group differences can be affected through environmental interventions.
— Creativity
Creativity is often assessed using tests of divergent and convergent thinking.
Exceptionally creative people take risks, prepare, and are highly motivated.
Although there is an association between creativity and some forms of mental illness, a causal link has not been established.
— Assessment and Society
Though often useful for prediction and as an indication of current performance, test results should not be used to limit an individual’s opportunities for development and change.
When the results of an assessment will affect an individual's life, the techniques used must be reliable and valid for that individual and for the purpose in question.