PS2102 Implicit Theories of Intelligence JM.pdf

Introduction to Intelligence: Everyday ideas around intelligence. PS2012: Social and Developmental Psychology LECTURE 1 John Maltby • • • • • Why does intelligence Intelligence is something we evaluate matter? ourselves as a basic ability. Intelligence is something by which we evaluate others He...

Introduction to Intelligence: Everyday ideas around intelligence. PS2012: Social and Developmental Psychology LECTURE 1 John Maltby • • • • • Why does intelligence Intelligence is something we evaluate matter? ourselves as a basic ability. Intelligence is something by which we evaluate others Heart at some of your decisions? Used as an indicator of positive and negative outcomes (e.g. Ruben et al. 2017 found higher levels of lead in blood (lead poisoning) in childhood related to lower levels of intelligence in adulthood. Is your exam performance so far in life, a fair reflection of your intelligence? Topics • Critically consider informal (‘implicit’/’lay’) theories of intelligence • Critically consider formal theories of intelligence Resources Implicit theories of intelligence Aims of the lecture Implicit (Everyday) theories of intelligence • Lay persons’ implicit theories of intelligence • Implicit theories of intelligence across cultures • Implicit theories of intelligence across the lifespan • Expert-persons implicit theories of intelligence • Incremental versus Entity models of intelligence Chapter 10 Why implicit theories of intelligence are important (Sternberg, 2001) • drive the way in which people perceive and evaluate their own intelligence and that of others. • explicit theories are wrong and may provide useful avenues to research • implicit theories of intelligence can elucidate theories around psychological constructs, such as the development of intelligence and cross-cultural aspects of intelligence U.S.A. Lay-persons’ implicit theories of intelligence (Sternberg, et al., 1981). 61 persons studying in a college library, 63 persons entering a supermarket, and 62 persons waiting for a train in a railway station were asked to list behaviours characteristic of "intelligence" and to rate themselves on each. Then 122 laypersons were asked to rate various properties of the behaviours that had been listed by respondents in the first experiment. Sternberg and his colleagues found 3 dimensions of intelligence among this sample. Practical problem solving: This is the ability to be practical and logical in regard to problems. Demonstrates an ability to analyse situations and engage in decision-making processes that involves reasoning. Able to think around a situation, create viewpoints, and present possible solutions to problems. Three factors of intelligence Verbal ability: This is the ability to express yourself and converse with others confidently and with some eloquence. Understand correct meanings for words, and able to talk to others in ways that others understand. When explaining difficult concept, ability to translate to simple examples, to explain that concept. Social Competence: This ability refers to skills necessary to be accepted and fulfilled socially. Understanding, competency, and motivation in terms of themselves and others. Good interpersonal skills, and a good balance between independence and interdependence with others. Able to cooperate with others, show personal responsibility and show positive regard for others. Lay-persons’ implicit theories of intelligence across the world (Sternberg, 1981; 2001) In western cultures researchers suggest there is an emphasis on the speed of mental processing and the ability to gather, assimilate, and sort information quickly and efficiently Sternberg (1985) focussed on responses among 40 Yale students. Western views of intelligence refer to the individual, while in Eastern cultures these ideas extend to social, historical and spiritual aspects of everyday interactions, knowledge and problem solving (Demetriou & Papadopoulous, 2004) China: Confucian philosophy emphasises intelligence through benevolence (an inclination to perform kind, charitable acts) (Sternberg, 2001). Taoist tradition emphasises humility and humbleness (Yang & Sternberg, 1997). Implicit theories of intelligence and development. We have looked at how perceptions of intelligence change across or between cultures. But perceptions of intelligence change within cultures. This is particularly true for how intelligence changes in development. Do people perceive intelligence differently for different stages of the life span? • Siegler and Richards (1982) compared implicit theories of intelligence among U.S.A. adults for 4 different stages of the life-span. – At 6 months old, recognise people and objects, show signs of motor coordination, show levels of awareness and make some verbalisation. – At 2 years thought to comprise verbal ability, ability to learn, awareness of people and the environment, motor coordination and curiosity. – At 10 years, to consist of verbal ability, learning, problem solving, reasoning and creativity – Adults, problem solving, verbal ability, reasoning, learning and creativity. Do people perceive intelligence differently at different stages of the life span? Fry (1984) compared implicit theories of intelligence at 3 stages of educational development; primary school secondary school, and tertiary (college and university) levels – At primary levels, social variables such as popularity, friendliness, respect of rules and order, and an interest in the environment were seen as important. – At secondary levels, energy and verbal fluency were seen as most important. – While at tertiary levels of educations, logical thinking, broad knowledge, reasons and the ability to deal maturely and effectively with problems was seen as intelligence. Do people perceive intelligence differently at different stages of the life span? • Yussen and Kane (1985) interviewed 71 11 to 16 year olds about their beliefs of intelligence. • Older students categorised intelligence into academic, social and physical intelligence. • Younger students did not differentiate between these aspects and thought intelligence as one dimension. • Yussen and Kane though found all the students considered knowledge to be central to intelligence, but older students reported academic skills were more important to intelligence that social skills. Expert conceptions of intelligence Attempts started in 1921 when the editors of the Journal of Educational Psychology convened a special issue in which prominent psychological theorists of the day were asked to describe what they imagined intelligence to be. 14 different responses • The power of good responses from the point of the view of truth or facts (E.L. Thorndike) • The ability to carry on abstract thinking (L.M. Terman) • The capacity to inhibit an instinctive adjustment, the capacity to redefine the inhibited instinctive adjustment (L.L. Thurstone). Expert conceptions of intelligence Sternberg and Detterman (1988) repeated the exercise by asking 24 experts (including Howard Gardner and Arthur Jensen) for their definition of intelligence. The researchers received many different definitions including, adaptability to new problems in life, ability in abstract thinking, adjustment to the environment, capacity for knowledge, independence, and originality. Arts. Knowledge, Ability to use knowledge to weigh up possible alternatives. See Analogies Expert implicit theories of intelligence across academic disciplines (Sternberg, 1985). Business. Ability to think logically, Focus on essential aspects of a problem, Follow others’ arguments and see where they lead. Philosophy. Critical and logical abilities, Ability to follow complex arguments, Ability to find errors in arguments and generate now arguments. Physics. Precise mathematical thinking, Ability to relate physical phenomena to the concepts of physics, Ability to grasp the laws of nature quickly. Carol Dweck and Entity versus Incremental theories of Intelligence • Ideas we have about intelligence can influence us. • Cultural variations around that influence Entity versus Incremental theories of Intelligence (Dweck, 2017) • • • Dweck argues that people can be placed on a continuum around the extent their beliefs about intelligence are consistent with the Entity theory of intelligence or the Incremental theory of intelligence. The Entity theory of intelligence proposes that intelligence is fixed and does that change. In Entity theory, this means that people believe is based on innate ability. It does not mean that individuals cannot learn new things, but overall, their overall intelligence and their innate abilities around intelligence remain the same. In Incremental theory, the implicit theory around intelligence is that is not fixed. That it can change, and that factors such as effort and persistence in learning can change individuals’ intelligence. Entity versus Incremental theories of Intelligence (Dweck, 2017) • • • Dweck recognised that people are not necessarily aware of whether they believe in Entity theory or Incremental theory. Rather, their beliefs around intelligence, including their own, reflect the extent to which they ascribe to one of these theories, what Dweck named the ‘mindset’ individuals had about intelligence. For Dweck, identifying these beliefs as mindsets was important because they have important consequences for how individuals approach various aspects in their lives. Entity versus Incremental theories of Intelligence (Dweck, 2017) • • Dweck and her co-authors (Dweck, Chiu, & Hong, 1995) found that individuals who had beliefs consistent with the entity theory of intelligence (that is, they believe intelligence is fixed) cannot react positively to them negative outcomes. This is because they make negative judgements about their intelligence from failures and feel unable to do anything about the negative outcomes because they believed they couldn’t change anything about their intelligence processes. Entity versus Incremental theories of Intelligence (Dweck, 2017) • • While individuals who had beliefs consistent with the entity theory of intelligence (that is they believe intelligence is changeable) were able to react more positively to negative outcomes. This is because they could believe they could change things over time, for example put more effort into things, plan better, come up with ways of solving and working with the problem. Cultural variations in the relationships between mindsets and academic achievement. • • • • Ana Costa and Luisa Faria completed a meta-analysis of 46 studies covering over 412,022 students from around the world that had explored the the relationship between mindsets and academic achievement. The found a cultural variation across the main continents, generally finding For students from Europe a positive relationship was found between an entity mindset and academic achievement For students from Eastern continents (Asia and Oceania) a positive relationship was found between an incremental mindset and academic achievement For students from North America a negative relationship was found between an entity mindset and academic achievement Cultural variations in the relationships between mindsets and academic achievement. Costa and Faria explore the reasons for this variation across continents for their findings. • • • “In Europe there is a tendency toward a more academically and professionally competitive society, which could influence the students’ perspectives of intelligence, leading them to prioritize individual outcomes and to value positive assessment over knowledge” (p.13). “Eastern continents might reflect the cultural differences at the educational level, for instance, as more collectivist societies might focus less in individual results and encourage students to value the learning process [work hard] over academic achievement” (p.13). “In North America … [authors found] that students with fixed conceptions about intelligence are more likely to have lower grades. In this continent, the results indicated that having an entity perspective of intelligence was more prejudicial for students’ achievement than an incremental one was advantageous” (p.13). Summary of the lecture • Implicit (Everyday) theories of intelligence • Lay persons’ implicit theories of intelligence • Implicit theories of intelligence across cultures • Implicit theories of intelligence across the lifespan • Expert-persons implicit theories of intelligence • Incremental versus Entity models of intelligence