The growing significance of hot intelligences

Comments on the original article, "Intelligence: New findings and theoretical developments," by R. E. Nisbett, J. Aronson, C. Blair, W. Dickens, J. Flynn, D. F. Halpern, and E. Turkheimer (see record 2011-30298-001). The present authors note that Nisbett et al's review focuses on intelligences that have been topics of research through the 20th century. Since then, however, attention to a new group of intelligences that the present authors refer to as "hot intelligences" has been growing (Mayer, Salovey, & Caruso, 2004). Although Nisbett et al (2012) mentioned potential newcomers to the group of intelligences, such as practical intelligence, the present authors feel that future reviews should consider the burgeoning research in new conceptions of intelligence. Here the authors express a rationale for including a consideration of these newly described intelligences. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved).     

No narrowing in mean Black-White IQ differences-Predicted by heritable g

Comments on the original article, "Intelligence: New findings and theoretical developments," by R. E. Nisbett, J. Aronson, C. Blair, W. Dickens, J. Flynn, D. F. Halpern, and E. Turkheimer (see record 2011-30298-001). The present authors assert Nisbett et al were incorrect when they claimed that between 1972 and 2002 there was a 5.5-point narrowing of the 15-point IQ gap between Blacks and Whites (p. 146). In doing so, they sidestepped Rushton and Jensen's (2006) objections to Dickens and Flynn's (2006) evidence and failed to include subsequent evidence. The present authors maintain that Nisbett et al failed to describe accurately how heritable g provides evidence of a significant genetic contribution to Black-White differences. The present authors claim Nisbett et al obscured the topic by invoking alleged age and social class interactions and adoption studies of very young children. Many twin and adoption studies have shown that by adolescence, there are equal heritabilities (about 50%) for Whites, Blacks, and East Asians (Hur, Shin, Jeong, & Han, 2006; Rushton & Jensen, 2010b). There is no evidence of any special cultural influence, such as extreme deprivation or being raised as a visible minority, that operates in one group and not in others. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved).     

Secular declines in Spearman's g: some evidence from the United States

The Flynn Effect (J. Flynn, 1987) refers to the apparent increases in intelligence quotient (IQ) observed over the past few decades. A related phenomenon is that the variance in test scores accounted for by Spearman's g (C. Spearman, 1904) varies according to IQ level. That is, g accounts for less variance in high IQ groups than in low IQ groups. Spearman termed this variant aspect of g the "law of diminishing returns." This study extends prior research on the Flynn Effect and the law of diminishing returns by examining changes in the statistical importance of Spearman's g that may accompany secular increases in IQ. Based on the standardization data from the United States versions of the Wechsler scales (i.e., Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scales of Intelligence, D. Wechsler, 1967; Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, D. Wechsler, 1949; Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale, D. Wechsler, 1955), this study indicated that, in most cases, the statistical significance of Spearman's g has indeed declined over the past several years. A. R. Jensen (1998) suggested that the components of the Flynn Effect warrant special investigation. The present study addresses this issue, in part by analyzing the Verbal and Performance subscales of the Wechsler scales. Additionally, this study further confirms the law of diminishing returns as applicable to different ages and time periods.     

The Flynn effect,group differences,and g loadings

Flynn effect gains are predominantly driven by environmental factors. Might these factors also be responsible for group differences in intelligence? Group differences in intelligence have been clearly shown to strongly correlate with g loadings. The empirical studies on whether the pattern of Flynn effect gains is the same as the pattern of group differences yield conflicting findings. We present new evidence on the topic using a number of datasets from the US and the Netherlands. Score gains and g loadings showed a small negative average correlation. The general picture is now that there is a small, negative correlation between g loadings and Flynn effect gains. It appears that the Flynn effect and group differences have different causes.     

The differentiation hypothesis and the Flynn effect

Many studies have shown that IQs have been increasing over the last half century. These increases have come to be known as "the Flynn effect". The "Flynn effect" represents a difference on ability-level between groups of the same age but different cohort. The ability-level differentiation hypothesis represents a difference on the relevance of cognitive factors between groups of high and low ability. Hence, it should be possible to imitate the ability-level differentiation effect by comparing groups of the same age but different cohort. The indifferentiation hypothesis represents no differences on the relevance of cognitive abilities in all age groups within the same cohort. The aim of the present study is to test the relationships between these phenomena. For this purpose we analyzed the American standardisation samples of the WISC, WISC-R and WISC-III. Results support the link between the Flynn effect and the differentiation hypothesis. Also, reported evidence replicate previous findings supporting the indifferentiation hypothesis. Implications for the assessment of the intelligence are discussed.     

Secular Declines in Spearman's g: Some Evidence from the United States

The Flynn Effect (J. Flynn, 1987) refers to the apparent increases in intelligence quotient (IQ) observed over the past few decades. A related phenomenon is that the variance in test scores accounted for by Spearman's g (C. Spearman, 1904) varies according to IQ level. That is, g accounts for less variance in high IQ groups than in low IQ groups. Spearman termed this variant aspect of g the “law of diminishing returns.” This study extends prior research on the Flynn Effect and the law of diminishing returns by examining changes in the statistical importance of Spearman's g that may accompany secular increases in IQ. Based on the standardization data from the United States versions of the Wechsler scales (i.e., Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scales of Intelligence, D. Wechsler, 1967; Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, D. Wechsler, 1949; Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale, D. Wechsler, 1955), this study indicated that, in most cases, the statistical significance of Spearman's g has indeed declined over the past several years. A. R. Jensen (1998) suggested that the components of the Flynn Effect warrant special investigation. The present study addresses this issue, in part by analyzing the Verbal and Performance subscales of the Wechsler scales. Additionally, this study further confirms the law of diminishing returns as applicable to different ages and time periods.     

Group differences in IQ are best understood as environmental in origin

Responds to the comments by J. P. Rushton (see record 2012-24333-012); M. A. Woodley and G. Meisenberg (see record 2012-24333-013); and J. D. Mayer, D. R. Caruso, A. T. Panter, and P. Salovey (see record 2012-24333-014) on the present authors' original article, "Intelligence: New findings and theoretical developments" (see record 2011-30298-001). Here, the authors address the concerns raised by Rushton and by Woodley and Meisenberg, and conclude by agreeing with Mayer et al's claim that many types of abilities can be thought of as intelligence of a kind. They note, however, that it has proved hard to show that measures of emotional intelligence or social intelligence contribute to behavior we would want to call intelligent over and above their correlation with conventional IQ tests. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved).     

Working memory, attention control, and the N-back task: a question of construct validity

The N-back task requires participants to decide whether each stimulus in a sequence matches the one that appeared n items ago. Although N-back has become a standard "executive" working memory (WM) measure in cognitive neuroscience, it has been subjected to few behavioral tests of construct validity. A combined experimental- correlational study tested the attention-control demands of verbal 2- and 3-back tasks by presenting n = 1 "lure" foils. Lures elicited more false alarms than control foils in both 2- and 3-back tasks, and lures caused more misses to targets that immediately followed them compared with control targets, but only in 3-back tasks. N-back thus challenges control over familiarity-based responding. Participants also completed a verbal WM span task (operation span task) and a marker test of general fluid intelligence (Gf; Ravens Advanced Progressive Matrices Test; J. C. Raven, J. E. Raven, & J. H. Court, 1998). N-back and WM span correlated weakly, suggesting they do not reflect primarily a single construct; moreover, both accounted for independent variance in Gf. N-back has face validity as a WM task, but it does not demonstrate convergent validity with at least 1 established WM measure.     

Is the Flynn effect on g?: A meta-analysis

Black/White differences in mean IQ have been clearly shown to strongly correlate with g loadings, so large group differences on subtests of high cognitive complexity and small group differences on subtests of low cognitive complexity. IQ scores have been increasing over the last half century, a phenomenon known as the Flynn effect. Flynn effect gains are predominantly driven by environmental factors. Might these factors also be responsible for group differences in intelligence? The empirical studies on whether the pattern of Flynn effect gains is the same as the pattern of group differences yield conflicting findings. A psychometric meta-analysis on all studies with seven or more subtests reporting correlations between g loadings and standardized score gains was carried out, based on 5 papers, yielding 11 data points (total N = 16,663). It yielded a true correlation of − .38, and none of the variance between the studies could be attributed to moderators. It appears that the Flynn effect and group differences have different causes. Suggestions for future research are discussed.     

The actor's behavioral history,his current role,and the divergence between actor and observer responsibility attributions

The actor's behavioral (High or Low) and role (High, Medium, or Low) respectability were varied in an actor-observer attribution study. A scenario described the actor's background combination of behavioral and role respectability and an event in which the actor participated. Subjects assigned actor and situational responsibilities to the event from their own viewpoint and from their perceptions of the actor's viewpoint. Subjects' awareness of the attributional divergence between actors and observers (Jones, E. E. & Nisbett, R. E. In Attribution: Perceiving the causes of behavior. New York: General Learning Press, 1971) and the information (public versus private) utilized by each were reflected in the results.     

Aging and vocabulary scores: a meta-analysis

Vocabulary scores were examined in a total of 210 articles, containing 324 independent pairings of younger and older adults, from the 1986-2001 issues of Psychology and Aging. The average effect size, favoring the old, was 0.80 SD. Production tests yielded smaller effects (0.68 SD) than multiple-choice tests (0.93 SD). Both age and education were found to be partially independent determinants of performance in production tests; age effects disappeared in multiple-choice tests as soon as education was taken into account. In addition, the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale--Revised Vocabulary subtest (D. Wechsler, 1981) was also found to be sensitive to the Flynn effect (J. R. Flynn, 1987; i.e., increasing test scores with advancing birth year). The results question the approach of using age-group equality in vocabulary scores as a check on sample equivalence.     

BOOK REVIEW

Books reviewed
The Geography of Thought: How Asians and Westerners Think Differently  . . .  and Why. By Richard E. Nisbett.
The Free Press, New York, 2003. 263 pp. ISBN 0-7432-1646-6. Price: $US 24.00 hardcover; $US 13.00 paperback.     

Richard Lynn’s contributions to personality and intelligence

An evaluation is presented of Lynn’s work on national differences in personality, race differences in intelligence, national IQs & economic development, correlates of national IQs, the Flynn effect, sex differences, eugenics and dysgenics, race differences in psychopathic personality, and intelligence of the Jews.     

The Flynn effect in South Africa

This is a study of secular score gains in South Africa. The findings are based on representative samples from datasets utilized in norm studies of popular mainstream intelligence batteries such as the WAIS as well as widely used test batteries which were locally developed and normed in South Africa. Flynn effects were computed in three ways. First, studies where two different groups take the same test, with several years in between, using representative or comparable samples were used. Second, studies where the same group takes two different test batteries at a specific time were used. Third, the score differences between English- and Afrikaans-speaking Whites in South Africa in the 20th century were compared. The Flynn effect in White groups in South Africa is somewhat smaller than the Flynn effect in Western, industrialized countries (total N = 6534), and the Flynn effect in Indian groups is substantially smaller (total N = 682). Non-verbal IQ scores surpassed increases in verbal IQ scores. The findings from English- and Afrikaans-speaking Whites evidence a leveling out of differences in score gains over the 20th century (total N = 79,310). A meta-regression analysis showed no clear support for the moderators a) method used for computing the Flynn effect gain, b) type of test battery, c) time span, d) quality of the sample, and e) average age of sample.     

The actor-observer asymmetry in attribution: a (surprising) meta-analysis

The actor-observer hypothesis (E. E. Jones & R. E. Nisbett, 1971) states that people tend to explain their own behavior with situation causes and other people's behavior with person causes. Widely known in psychology, this asymmetry has been described as robust, firmly established, and pervasive. However, a meta-analysis on 173 published studies revealed average effect sizes from d = -0.016 to d = 0.095. A moderator analysis showed that the asymmetry held only when the actor was portrayed as highly idiosyncratic, when hypothetical events were explained, when actor and observer were intimates, or when free-response explanations were coded. In addition, the asymmetry held for negative events, but a reverse asymmetry held for positive events. This valence effect may indicate a self-serving pattern in attribution, but across valence, no actor-observer asymmetry exists.     

Cognitive contours: recent work on cross-cultural psychology and its relevance for education

This paper outlines new work in cross-cultural psychology largely drawn from Nisbett, Choi, and Smith (Cognition, 65, 15–32, 1997); Nisbett, Peng, Choi, & Norenzayan, Psychological Review, 108(2), 291–310, 2001; Nisbett, The Geography of Thought: How Asians and Westerners Think Differently...and Why. New York: Free Press 2003), Ji, Zhang and Nisbett (Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 87(1), 57–65, 2004), Norenzayan (2000) and Peng (Naive Dialecticism and its Effects on Reasoning and Judgement about Contradiction. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 1997) Peng and Nisbett (Cross-Cultural Similarities and Differences in the Understanding of Physical Causality. Paper presented at the Science and Culture: Proceedings of the Seventh Interdisciplinary Conference on Science and Culture, Frankfort, K. Y. 1996), and Peng, Ames, & Knowles (Culture and Human Inference: Perspectives from three traditions. In: D. Matsumoto (Ed.), Handbook of Cross-Cultural Psychology (pp. 1–2). Oxford: Oxford University Press 2000). The paper argues that the findings on cultural influences on inference-making have implications for teaching and education generally, and specifically for the debate on conceptions and misconceptions of Asian students studying in western tertiary institutions around the world. The position defended is that, while there seems to be compelling empirical evidence for intercultural differences in thought patterns, these patterns are, for the most part, insignificant in everyday exchanges, though language and culture might subtlety modulate our inference-making at the margins. Linguistic determinism however is not defended. Nonetheless, the evidence provides food for thought, and it needs to inform the recent debates about international students studying overseas.

A cross-cultural study of hindsight bias and conditional probabilistic reasoning

Hindsight bias is a mistaken belief that one could have predicted a given outcome once the outcome is known. Choi and Nisbett (2000 Choi, I. and Nisbett, R. E. 2000. Cultural psychology of surprise: Holistic theories and recognition of contradiction. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 79: 890–905. [Crossref], [PubMed], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) reported that Koreans showed stronger hindsight bias than Americans, and explained the results using the distinction between analytic cognition (Westerners) and holistic cognition (Easterners). The purpose of the present study was to see whether hindsight bias is stronger among Easterners than among Westerners using a probability judgement task, and to test an “explicit–implicit” hypothesis and a “rule-dialectics” hypothesis. We predicted that the implicit process is more active among Easterners to generate hindsight bias, and that Easterners are more dialectical thinkers, whereas Westerners are more rule-based thinkers. French, British, Japanese, and Korean participants were asked to make probabilistic judgements in a Good Samaritan scenario (Experiment 1) and in a scenario including conditional probabilistic judgement (Experiment 2). In both Experiments, we presume that the implicit revision of causal models is made just by being given unexpected outcome information, and that explicit revision is made by being asked to point out possible factors for an unexpected outcome. In the results Easterners showed greater hindsight bias generally and it was greater in the Good Samaritan scenario. We conclude that the reason why hindsight bias was lower among Westerners is primarily that they tried to follow a rule to suppress the bias.     

A dynamical model of general intelligence: the positive manifold of intelligence by mutualism

Scores on cognitive tasks used in intelligence tests correlate positively with each other, that is, they display a positive manifold of correlations. The positive manifold is often explained by positing a dominant latent variable, the g factor, associated with a single quantitative cognitive or biological process or capacity. In this article, a new explanation of the positive manifold based on a dynamical model is proposed, in which reciprocal causation or mutualism plays a central role. It is shown that the positive manifold emerges purely by positive beneficial interactions between cognitive processes during development. A single underlying g factor plays no role in the model. The model offers explanations of important findings in intelligence research, such as the hierarchical factor structure of intelligence, the low predictability of intelligence from early childhood performance, the integration/differentiation effect, the increase in heritability of g, and the Jensen effect, and is consistent with current explanations of the Flynn effect.     

Are cognitive differences between countries diminishing? Evidence from TIMSS and PISA

Cognitive ability differences between countries can be large, with average IQs ranging from approximately 70 in sub-Saharan Africa to 105 in the countries of north-east Asia. A likely reason for the great magnitude of these differences is the Flynn effect, which massively raised average IQs in economically advanced countries during the 20th century. The present study tests the prediction that international IQ differences are diminishing again because substantial Flynn effects are now under way in the less developed “low-IQ countries” while intelligence is stagnating in the economically advanced “high-IQ countries.” The hypothesis is examined with two periodically administered scholastic assessment programs. TIMSS has tested 8th-grade students periodically between 1995 and 2011 in mathematics and science, and PISA has administered tests of mathematics, science and reading between 2000 and 2009. In both TIMSS and PISA, low-scoring countries tend to show a rising trend relative to higher-scoring countries. Despite the short time series of only 9 and 16 years, the results indicate that differences between high-scoring and low-scoring countries are diminishing on these scholastic achievement tests. The results support the prediction that through a combination of substantial Flynn effects in low-scoring countries and diminished (or even negative) Flynn effects in high-scoring countries, cognitive differences between countries are getting smaller on a worldwide scale.