IQ on the rise: the Flynn effect in rural Kenyan children

Abstract - Multiple studies have documented significant IQ gains over time, a phenomenon labeled the Flynn effect. Data from 20 industrialized nations show massive IQ gains over time, most notably in culturally reduced tests like the Raven's Progressive Matrices. To our knowledge, however, this is the first study to document the Flynn effect in a rural area of a developing country. Data for this project were collected during two large studies in Embu, Kenya, in 1984 and 1998. Results strongly support a Flynn effect over this 14-year period, with the most significant gains found in Raven's matrices. Previously hypothesized explanations (e.g., improved nutrition; increased environmental complexity; and family, parental, school, and methodological factors) for the Flynn effect are evaluated for their relevance in this community, and other potential factors are reviewed. The hypotheses that resonate best with our findings are those related to parents' literacy, family structure, and children's nutrition and health.     

Use of a task-oriented self-instruction method to support children in primary school with poor handwriting quality and speed

Two studies were conducted to investigate the effect of a task-specific self-instruction intervention to improve handwriting ability of children with poor handwriting quality in schools for regular education (Study 1) and children with poor handwriting quality in schools for special education (Study 2). Study 1 showed that children with poor handwriting quality who received handwriting intervention on an individual basis for three months improved on average more on quality of writing than control children without handwriting problems who did not receive intervention. In contrast, the control group improved more in speed of writing after the intervention period. At an individual level, three out of the seven children with poor handwriting quality before intervention were not classified as such anymore after the intervention period. Study 2 showed that after six months of intervention in a group setting children with poor handwriting quality improved their quality of writing more so than children with poor handwriting quality who had not received intervention. On speed of handwriting no significant group differences emerged. We conclude that the task-oriented self-instruction method applied in this study seems to improve especially the quality of handwriting, not speed, of children initially identified as having poor handwriting quality.     

The role of individual bargaining behavior in the pay setting process: A pilot study

A model of initial salary detemination for professional and managerial employees is developed. That part of the model which concentrates on the role of employee salary negotiation behaviors and attitudes was investigated using a sample of 117 individuals. Significant variance in salary bargaining attitudes and behaviors was found; attitudinal and demographic differences between negotiators and non-negotiators were determined. Additionally, negotiating behavior was found to be positively related to salary, but only slightly related to salary growth.     

Moral judgment in relation to behavioral and cognitive disorders in adolescents

The capacity for formulating moral judgments shown by 20 emotionally disturbed, cognitively delayed adolescents was related to their social behaviors as observed in a classroom situation. Adolescents reported by their teachers to be shy and submissive were less capable of reasoning about moral issues than were adolescents who were seen as more assertive and socially engaged. The level of moral judgment was not a function of intelligence or ability to understand concrete operations. The implication that social engagement is a critical determinant of moral judgment for these adolescents is discussed.     

TASK DIFFICULTY AND ABERRANT BEHAVIOR IN SEVERELY HANDICAPPED STUDENTS

The influence of task difficulty on aberrant behavior was investigated with three severely handicapped students. Noticeably higher rates of problem behavior occurred in demand compared to no-demand conditions. In addition, there were higher rates of problem behaviors on difficult versus easy tasks. Both these findings were validated with visual discrimination and perceptual motor tasks. An errorless learning procedure effectively minimized errors and aberrant behavior in visual discrimination tasks but not in perceptual motor tasks. It was conceptualized that aberrant behavior was maintained by negative reinforcement contingencies. Difficult tasks were aversive to the children, who emitted aberrant responses to escape or avoid such tasks. By contrast, conditions in which no demands were made, easy tasks, and, in visual discrimination learning, errorless tasks, were less aversive and resulted in little or no problem behavior. Implications for reducing maladaptive behaviors through curricular modifications are discussed and contrasted to more traditional consequence manipulation approaches.     

The school psychologist as behavioral ecologist

Some psychologists involved in the implementation of applied behavioral psychology in educational systems must increasingly attend to the ecological impact of such interventions. An ecological orientation emphasizing system-like interdependencies among environment, organism, and behavior suggests several substantial additions to conventional role functions of behavioral school psychologists. Such functions involve taking an active part in evaluating and assessing second-order consequences of behavioral interventions. Recommendations for functional and procedural changes are provided within this framework.     

The control of movement in the preferred and non-preferred hands

The nature of the difference in skill between the preferred and non-preferred hands was investigated using a peg-board task. The first experiment examined the effects of varying movement amplitude and target tolerance on performance. The difference between hands was found to be related to tolerance rather than movement amplitude. The second study analysed a film record of well-practised subjects, confirming the hypothesis that most of the difference between hands is due to relative slowness of the non-preferred hand in the positioning phase involving small corrective movements. Analysis of the type and number of errors further suggested that this result is not due to differences in duration of movements but to their increased frequency, implying greater accuracy of aiming with the preferred hand. Thus whilst the initial gross analysis implicated feedback processing in skill differences the more detailed analysis suggests that motor output of the nonpreferred hand is simply more variable.