Introduction to Psychology

introduction to psychology

INTRODUCTION 1. A person’s intelligence is determined by administering a variety of tests that measure his or her specific mental skills such as verbal comprehension , memory or spatial ability .The results are then analyzed statistically and conclusions are drawn about underlying mental abilities. DEFINITION OF INTELLIGENCE It is the ability to deal with situations in an effective manner within an environment .It is the ability to act purposefully in an environment .It encompasses rational thought and reasoning. THEORIES OF INTELLIGENCE 1. PSYCHOMETRIC APPROACH TO INTELLIGENCE
It proposes that intelligence is a mental capacity that can be understood by analyzing performance on mental tests. The first test of this approach was performed in the nineteenth century by Sir Francis Galton(1822-1911).He believed that individual differences in abilities had their basis on heredity and could be measured through a series of tests of sensory discrimination and reaction time. People were given psychological and physical tests measuring such things as visual acuity, grip strength and reaction time to sounds. He believed that if one performed well in one test ,he or she will perform well in all the rest .His investigations were unsuccessful because; * His measurements were crude. * His tests were poor predictors of actual intelligence such as academic performance. 2. CHARLES SPEARMAN TWO-FACTOR THEORY
Its principal contribution was the development of a mathematical technique called factor analysis which is a procedure for analyzing the relationships or correlations among test scores. This technique enabled researchers to check on the possibilities of one being intelligent in one way like the ability to remember and not in another like spatial reasoning in a systematic way.
He noted that tests of mental ability are positively correlated .He noted that people who score high on IQ or mental ability tests usually score higher on other types of tests and people who scored lower generally had lower scores on other tests.
Based on his factor analysis technique, he stated that two factors directly affect an individual’s score on mental tests. * The general factor/general intelligence/”g”-it represented what all mental tests have in common. Scores on all these tests were positively correlated .He believed that this was because all tests drew on the general factor.
The specific factor-it related to whatever unique abilities that a particular test required so it differs from test to test. 3. HOWARD GARDNER’S THEORY OF MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES
He says that the theory of multiple intelligences holds that there are seven basic forms of intelligence; * Musical intelligence-the ability to compose and understand music mostly relied on by audio engineers , musicians and child prodigies. * Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence-the ability to plan and understand a sequence of body movements used by dancers and athletes. * Logical-mathematical intelligence-the ability to manipulate abstract and complex symbols mainly used by superior scientists ,logical problem solvers and computer programmers. * Linguistic intelligence-the ability to use language well like journalists ,great writers ,poets and lawyers who can express themselves verbally. * Spatial intelligence-the ability to reason well about spatial relations used mostly by architects and those with superior navigation skills. * Interpersonal intelligence-the ability to understand other people used by those who can easily infer other people’s moods ,temperaments ,intentions and motivations like politicians. * Intrapersonal intelligence-the ability to understand oneself .It is mostly used by someone who has great insight into his or her own feelings and emotions. 4. CATTELL AND HORN THEORY OF INTELLIGENCE
Raymond B .Cattell and John Horn suggested that instead of possessing one general capacity “g” ,people have two types of intelligence; * Fluid intelligence-it is a measure of one’s ability to solve problems ,remember and reason in ways that are uninfluenced by experiences .It is determined primarily by biological or genetic factors. * Crystallized intelligence-it measures acquired knowledge and ability .For example we learn how to solve arithmetic problems and develop abilities that depend on level of schooling and cultural influences.
People are born with the same level of fluid intelligence but end up performing differently on tests of mental ability due to different levels of exposure. 5. STERNBERG’S TRIARCHIC THEORY OF INTELLIGENCE(1977,1985,1995)
It subsumes both Spearman’s g and underlying information processing components .His triarchic theory includes three sub-theories; * Analytical (componential) intelligence-refers to basic analytic skills of processing information ,representing problems in the right way and generating effective strategies for solutions .Sternberg believes it is based on joint operations of metacomponents ,performance components and knowledge acquisition components of intelligence. * Metacomponents control ,monitor and evaluate cognitive processing .They are used to analyze problems and pick a strategy for solving them. * Performance components execute strategies assembled by metacomonents. * Knowledge acquisition components are processes used in gaining and storing new knowledge. * Creative (experiential) intelligence-it expresses how well people are able to cope with new or novel task .It considers and reflects how an individual connects the internal world with the external reality .Novel tasks are good measures because they assess the individual’s ability to apply existing knowledge to new problems.
Practical (contextual) intelligence-it taps how well people fit into their environments .Intelligent people solve problems that are uniquely posed by their cultural surroundings .They mold themselves well into existing settings or select new environments .It is a combination of ; * Adaptation to the environment in order to have goals met. * Changing the environment in order to have goals met. * If adaptation to or changing the environment don’t work ,moving to a new environment in which goals can be met. 6. THE COGNITIVE APPROACH TO INTELLIGENCE
It proposes that intelligence or individual test performance needs to be understood by analyzing internal mental processes .This kind of analysis typically comes in two forms; * Measurement of speed of mental processing .The faster the brain communicates internally the higher the individual’s intelligence. * Analysis of the specific mental operations that produce intelligence thoughts done through componential analysis that uses people’s reaction times as well as their error rates to isolate the mental operations that are tapped by traditional intelligence.
ROLE OF GENETIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS IN DETERMINING INTELLIGENCE
GENETIC FACTORS
Multiple genes have contributed to intelligence like a portion of DNA has been found to have spatial ability and also specific genes predict performance but not general cognitive ability .Through adoption studies ,the IQ scores of children are compared to those of their biological and adoptive relatives .Children’s IQ correlates more to the biological mother’s IQ than to the adoptive mother’s IQ .The more the genes in common the higher the correlation . Identical twins ,even when raised separately have more similarity in IQ than fraternal twins or non-twin siblings .The number that denotes the heritability refers to the proportion of causes of variation within a population ,not to the proportion of the characteristics that is inherited and because it is an average ,it does not apply to individuals .
An alteration to genes can cause retardation thus reducing a child’s intelligence .For example creation of an extra chromosome (number 21) during conception causes Down Syndrome which prevents neurons from developing properly thus reducing one’s IQ .
Fragile X syndrome occurs in the case where a child inherits a genetic quirk :a small bit of DNA on the X-chromosome .The repetition of the bit of DNA is compounded over generations so the more the generations advance the more severe the symptoms .
Autism is a condition of intense self-involvement to the exclusion of external reality .Autistic people have very low IQ .
ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS (MORE REAL THAN APPARENT)
When poor black children from rural to urban white schools their IQ increased by more than half per year meaning it is the new environment that increased the child’s IQ.
Identical twins share the same prenatal environment in the womb before birth this explains the high correlation of their IQ despite them being separated after birth and being raised apart .This high correlation reflects their early environment as well as their shared genes.
Fraternal twins who are separated after birth and brought up in different environments may have a difference in their IQ due to different levels of exposure and also difference in genes.
Microenvironment which is the environment created by one’s own presence and depends on appearance and behaviour also affect intelligence .For example people brought up in the same home may have totally different levels of IQ due to personal differences like temperament and sociability .The same environment does not mean children will have the same IQ since it depends on genes and temperament of a person like a person may like reading more than another hence he or she will have a higher IQ while a person who is shy would not take a job in sales .
People in different environments may have the same IQ .For example one may be from a humble background may have access to very few books but this person reads all of them while the other in a rich home may have access to so many books but does not make use of all of them thus at the end of it all they might have read the same volume hence attaining the same level of intelligence.
Our genes determine the range within which environment molds us .This explains why some aspects of the environment don’t have the same effect on all children growing up in the household .The same event can be a very different experience or different people .It depends on each child’s predispositions and inclinations .Over time as people as people age they are increasingly able to select their
The child’s prenatal environment influences his or her IQ .Fetal alcohol syndrome occurs when a environments and genetically determined properties lead people to select some environments over others .pregnant woman takes alcohol .It reduces the child’s IQ .Many environmental factors can lead to mental retardation .For example malnutrition of a pregnant mother ,diabetes ,HIV infection ,high doses of X-rays and rubella or even brain injury to the child due to difficulties during delivery .Some childhood diseases like measles also lower a child’s IQ .

THE INTELLIGENCE QUOTIENT (IQ)
It is a test score used in western countries as a general measure of intelligence .It is a measure of intelligence obtained by dividing a person’s mental age by the chronological age and multiplying the result by 100 .It is a score on an intelligence test originally based on comparing one’s mental age to chronological age but later based on norms .A French physician named Alfred Binet (1857-1911) and Theodore Simon (1873-1961) were the first to test intelligence .Their aim was to develop an objective way to identify children in the public schools who needed extra classroom help .They gave tests to children of different ages like copying a drawing ,repeating a string of digits ,recognizing coins and making changes and explain why a particular statement did not make sense .They then compared the performance of children of the same age against a normal score so if a child could solve all problems solved by nine year old children but failed to solve those solved by ten year old children ,his or her mental age is nine years .Children with a mental age lower than their chronological age were considered relatively low .
Terman and his colleagues at Stanford University developed the Stanford-Binet revision of the Binet-Simon .David Wechsler developed another set of intelligence tests the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) and the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC) . He divided his tests in two major parts; * Verbal subtests-assesses the test-takers ability to understand and use language to assess vocabulary ,comprehension and other aspects of verbal ability. * Performance subtests-assesses non-verbal tasks like arranging pictures in an order that tells a story and spotting the missing element in a picture.
William Stern a German psychologist developed a precise idea of measuring the Intelligence Quotient by dividing mental age by chronological age and multiplying by 100 to avoid fractional scores .A score of 100 meant that a child’s mental age matched the child’s actual age .The disadvantage of this method is that chronological age develops while mental age does not develop hence older test-takers appear less intelligent meaning as time goes by ,people become less intelligent with age.
Today the test of IQ is not by mental age compared to chronological age but by specifying how a test-taker stands relative to the performance of other people of the same age where we take a standardized sample (a random selection of people drawn from a carefully defined population) and norming (the process of setting the mean score and standard deviation of a test based on results from a standard sample) .
HOW NATURE AND NURTURE AFFECT INTELLLIGENCE TESTING
NATURE
Differences in intelligence among individuals arises due to parts of brain varying in size and efficiency . * Brain size-People with larger brains tend to have higher intelligence as measured by IQ tests .Larger brain tend to have more neurons .It is not clear whether larger brain sizes cause greater intelligence or whether acting intelligently causes larger brain size .Interacting with the environment can change one’s brain even causing it to grow .The key variable may not be the overall brain size but the size of crucial areas like the part that controls the left hand is larger in professional musicians who play stringed instruments than in other musicians or other people .Scientists and mathematicians also tend to have large parts of the bottom portions of the parietal lobe .It also contains a large number of glial cells which support neurons .This part is involved in mathematical thinking and spatial visualization .But the relation between brain size and intelligence is not so simple .Females have about the same average intelligence as males but generally have smaller brains .Neanderthals had larger brains than we do but there is no evidence that they were smarter . * Speed of the essence-IQ correlates with the time taken to respond to a stimulus .The higher the IQ the faster the response .Many subtests in WAIS are timed and thus faster test-takers will tend to complete more questions and therefore have a higher chance at higher scores .However ,people with higher IQ also require less exposure time to a stimulus in order to judge accurately .However ,much of the underlying basis of IQ has nothing to do with how quickly one can make choices .Measures of brain function have not shown that the brain “runs faster” in people who have high IQ .It is not that people with high IQ are necessarily faster rather they process information more effectively . * Working memory-Correlation between IQ and speed is best for tasks that are neither too easy nor too difficult .The highest correlation is found when the task exercises working memory as much as possible without exceeding its capacity .IQ may index ,at least in part how well the central executive of working memory can manage information when the going gets tough ,but not so tough as to be impossible .Parts of the frontal lobes used in working memory are recruited in tasks that require high “g” .Neuroimaging studies have revealed the neural bases of different forms of intelligence .For example ,Probhakaran and his colleagues used functional resonance imaging to study which brain areas are activated while participants perform Raven’s progressive matrices .This tests includes two sorts of items which either require visual-spatial reasoning or simply finding an abstract rule .They found that items that required visual-spatial reasoning activated part of the frontal lobes that hold information about objects and spatial relations in working memory and items requiring analytical reasoning activated these areas as well as parts of the frontal lobes used in verbal working memory .The frontal lobes direct the course of reasoning thus frontal lobes can disrupt fluid intelligence .
NURTURE
Genes set the reactions of range ,the extreme upper and lower limits of different aspects of an individual’s intelligence .The environment positions an individual within this range .Some group differences in some abilities like sex differences in spatial abilities may reflect biological differences like individuals .Environmental effects can also occur at a time when an IQ test is carried out when this happens ,test scores are not valid indicators of ability.
INTELLIGENCE TESTS * Tests given to rural-urban individuals
It is clear that the environment affects intelligence as assessed by IQ .For example when poor black children moved from south of Philadelphia in the 1840s their IQs increased by a bit ore than half for each year they spent in their new schools .Children in urban areas tend to depict high IQ scores because of exposure ,proper education and acquisition of practical intelligence . * Race difference
Asian Americans tend to score higher on IQ tests than white Americans who in turn score higher than African Americans .Poor performance of African American is rooted in their genes .These differences are caused by: * Test bias was because the tests were designed for white culture and this led to lower IQ score by Africans because they had different life experience. * Environmental differences-whites are rich and most of them attend good schools and hence the higher IQ while Africans had lesser money so they get lesser and low quality training .
However , IQ distribution overlaps ; plenty of Africans have a higher IQ than Americans. * Sex differences
Males are better in some tasks than females and vice versa .Women are better than men in tasks that require verbal reasoning .Traditional society also encourages boys to do some tasks and be educated and look down upon girls .This enables boys develop spatial abilities .

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
Artificial intelligence is the ability of a computer or other machine to perform those activities that are normally thought to require intelligence.
Artificial intelligence is primarily concerned with symbolic representations of knowledge of reasoning , that is , using common assumptions .Examples of problems studied in artificial intelligence are planning how a robot or a person might assemble a complicated device , or more from one place to another and diagnosing the nature of a person’s disease or a malfunction from the observations of the problems .

The approach of artificial intelligence researchers is largely experimental , with small patches of mathematical theory .New programs are created to explore ideas about how intelligent action might be attained and are also developed to test hypotheses about concepts or mechanisms involved in intelligent behaviour .

The foundations of artificial intelligence are divided into representation ,problem-solving methods ,architecture and knowledge .
To work on a task ,a computer must have an internal representation in its memory .Artificial intelligence has gradually built up a stock of relevant problem-solving methods that apply generally .

Weak Artificial Intelligence is an artificial intelligence system which is not intended to match or exceed the capabalities of human beings .This does not attempt to stimulate the full range of human abilities . Strong Artificial Intelligent
It refers to artificial intelligence that matches or exceeds human intelligence ,the intelligence of a machine that can successfully perform any intellectual task that a human being can .It is also referred to as artificial general intelligence .Strong artificial intelligence is associated with traits such as consciousness ,scientific and self-awareness .This uses software to study or accomplish problem solving or reasoning tasks .