INTELLIGENCE AND ABILITY

TOPICS COVERED:
• INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES IN INDIVIDUAL FUNCTIONING

• WHAT IS INTELLIGENCE?

• THEORIES OF INTELLIGENCE

• MEASUREMENT OF IQ

• EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE

• APTITUDE, INTEREST AND ACHIEVEMENT.

INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES IN HUMAN FUNCTIONING

• Individual variations are common within and across all species. Variations add colour and beauty to nature.

• Variability is a fact of nature and individuals vary in terms of physical characteristics, such as weight, height,
etc. They also vary in terms of psychological dimensions. They may be intelligent or dull, dominant or
submissive, etc.

• Different traits can exist in varying degrees in an individual. In this sense, each one of us is unique as s/he
exemplifies a typical combination of various traits.

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 • Individual differences refer to distinctiveness and variations among people’s characteristics and behaviour
patterns.

• Some psychologists believe that our behaviours are influenced more by situational factors than by our
personality traits.

• Situationism states that situations and circumstances in which one is placed influence one’s behaviour. The
situationist perspective views human behaviour relatively more as a result of influence of external factors.

• Intelligence is a key construct employed to know how individuals differ from one another. It also provides an
understanding of how people adapt to their behaviour according to the environment they live in.

• Intelligence is the way of acting and helping one individual in reaching his/her goal. It is more of a native
ability than an acquired ability.
• Intelligence is a common term of our daily life and it is used to denote abilities involved in performing a wide
variety of everyday life activities.

• It can be defined as the ability to learn from one’s experience, acquired knowledge and use resources
effectively in adopting new situations or solving problems.

DEFINITIONS
ALFRED BINET: Intelligence is a general intellectual capability to reason well with abstract materials, to
comprehend well, to have a clear direction of thought, to relate thinking to attain a desirable goal and to be
self-critical.

DAVID WECHSLER: Intelligence is the aggregate or global capacity of an individual to act

purposefully, to think rationally and to deal effectively with his environment.
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 ROBERT STERNBERG: Intelligence is the ability to adapt, to shape and select environment to accomplish
one’s goals and those of one’s society and culture.

COMPREHENSIVE DEFINITIONS:
1. Intelligence can be regarded as a sort of mental energy in a form of mental or cognitive ability available with
an individual to enable him to handle his/her environment in terms of adaptation and facing novel situations as
effectively as possible.

2. Intelligence is a mental capacity available with the individual at a particular situation. This
mental capacity helps the individual in the task of practical or theoretical manipulation of
objects present in one’s environment in order to adapt or face new challenges and problems
to be successful in life.
NATURE OF INTELLIGENCE:
• The distribution of intelligence is not equal among all human beings.

• It is highly individualistic. Intelligence not only vary individually but it also tends to vary from age to age and
from situation to situation.

• It is the ability to gain from past experiences, to learn new information and to adjust to new situations.

• It involves awareness and it is goal-oriented.

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• It is rational and has a definite value.

• Intelligence is a general power of adaptation or capacity to learn or acquire complex and difficult ideas or
emotions or sensitivity and sentiments and motor skills.

• It is organization of ideas and sum total of ideas.

• It depends upon the innate factors and influences of environment.

NATURE-NURTURE CONTROVERSY
• The evidence for heredity influences on intelligence comes mainly from studies on twins and adopted children.

• The intelligence of identical twins reared together correlate almost 0.90. Twins separated early in childhood
also show considerable similarity in their intellectual, personality and behavioural characteristics.

• The intelligence of identical twins reared in different environments correlate 0.72, those of fraternal twins
reared together correlate almost 0.60, and those of brothers and sisters reared together correlate about 0.50,
while siblings reared apart correlate about 0.25.

• Another line of evidence comes from the studies of adopted children’s intelligence is more similar to their
biological rather than adoptive parents.

• With respect to the role of environment, studies have reported that as children grow in age, their intelligence
level tends to move closer to that of their adoptive parents.

• Children from disadvantaged homes adopted into families with higher socio-economic status exhibit a large
increase in their intelligence scores.

• There is evidence that environmental deprivation lowers intelligence while rich nutrition, good family
background, and quality schooling increases intelligence.

• There is a general consensus among psychologists that intelligence is a product of complex interaction of
heredity (nature) and environment (nurture).

• Heredity can best be viewed as something that sets a range within which an individual’s development is
actually shaped by the support and opportunities of the environment.

THEORIES OF INTELLIGENCE
PSYCHOMETRIC AND INFORMATION PROCESSING APPROACH
• Psychologists proposed several theories of intelligence.

• It can be broadly classified into Psychometric Approach or Structural Approach. It is also regarded as
old/classical theories of intelligence. Another one is Information-processing Approach or Modern theories of
intelligence.

• PSYCHOMETRIC APPROACH - It considers intelligence as an aggregate of abilities. It expresses the

individual’s performance in terms of a single index of cognitive abilities. It focusses on structure of intelligence
or its underlying dimensions.
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 • INFORMATION-PROCESSING APPROACH – It describes the processes people use in intellectual
reasoning and problem-solving. The major focus of this approach is on how an intelligent person acts. It
emphasizes studying cognitive functions underlying intelligent behaviour.

PSYCHOMETRIC APPROACH (old/classical theories of intelligence)

UNI FACTOR THEORY

• Alfred Binet was the first psychologist who tried to formalize the concept of intelligence in terms of mental
operations.

• Binet’s theory of intelligence was simple as it arose from his interest in differentiating more intelligent from less
intelligent individuals.

• He therefore, conceptualized intelligence as consisting of one similar set of abilities which can be used for
solving any or every problem in an individual’s environment.

• His theory of intelligence is called Uni or One Factor Theory of intelligence.

• This theory came to be disputed when psychologists started analyzing data of individuals, which was collected
using Binet’s test.

TWO FACTOR THEORY

• In 1927, English psychologist, Charles Spearman pronounced that intelligence consists of two kinds of abilities
or factors- ‘general’ (g) and ‘specific’ (s).
• He developed this theory on the basis of a simple observation that people who did well in others. He referred to
it as general mental ability and symbolized it as ‘g’.
• ‘g’ factor is characterized by mental energy which is a common factor in all different kinds of activities we do.

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• ‘s’ factor is a specific factor which shows special abilities. It is a specific mental activity present in an
individual. These factors are required for various specific intellectual activities.

CHARACTERISTICS OF g- FACTOR:
• It is in inborn or innate.

• It is general mental ability.

• It is constant; i.e. it remains same for the individual in all activities.

• It is unique; it differs from person to person. It is used in every activity of a person in his daily life.

• Higher g-factor in one’s intelligence usually indicates chances of greater success in life.

CHARACTERISTICS OF s- factor:
• It is learned and acquired through interaction with environment.

• It varies from activity to activity done by same individual.

• Individual differ in the degree of ‘s’ factor.

• ‘s’ factor is an ability to excel in certain areas.

• The ‘g’ factor is common to all intellectual activities, whereas, ‘s’ factors are required for various specific
intellectual activities.

EXAMPLE- A person gets average score in physics, mathematics, literature and other subjects. This
suggest that he has general intelligence for all these subjects. At the same time, his highest marks in
mathematics and physics proves his proficiency for these two subjects. This indicates he has specific ability
or factor for these two subjects.

On the basis of the correlational process, Spearman referred to an individual’s intelligence as -

g+s1+s2+s3…….Sn.

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 CRITICISMS:
• Spearman suggested that there are only two factors of intelligence while other psychologists were of the view
that there are more than two factors of intelligence.

• He realized the presence of group factors but couldn’t explain them properly in his theory.

• How to measure the general and specific ability of each individual is not stated clearly in his theory.

• He failed to propose different abilities like artistic or musical ability. These abilities were less general than ‘g’
but they were certainly no specific.

GROUP FACTOR/ PRIMARY MENTAL ABILITIES (PMA) THEORY

• American psychologist, L.L. Thurstone has put forward the theory of Primary Mental Abilities (PMA). It is
also known as Group factors/ Multi factor theory of intelligence. He stated that there are 9 major abilities.

• According to Thurstone, there are different sets of common mental activities that constitute different groups.
Each group is guided by a single primary factor. Certain mental operations having common primary factors
give them psychological and functional unity which differentiates them from other mental operations.

9 such abilities are as follows:

• VERBAL FACTOR (V): It is concerned with the comprehension of verbal relations, words and ideas.

• SPATIAL FACTOR (S): It is involved in any task in which the subjects manipulate objects imaginatively in
space.

• NUMERICAL FACTOR (N): It is concerned with numerical ability to do calculations rapidly, quickly and
accurately.

• MEMORY FACTOR (M): Involving the ability to memorize quickly.

• WORD-FLUENCY FATOR (W): It is involved whenever the subject is asked to think of isolated words at a
rapid rate.

• INDUCTIVE REASONING (RI): It is the ability to draw inferences or conclusions on the basis of specific
instances.

• DEDUCTIVE REASONING (RD): It is the ability to make generalized results or conclusions.

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• PERCEPTUAL FACTOR(P): It is the ability to perceive objects accurately. It is also known as Perceptual
speed.

• PROBLEM-SOLVING ABILITY / REASONING (R): It is the ability to solve problems independently.

CRITICISMS:
• Rejection of the common g- factor.

• Rejected the inductive and deductive reasoning factors. Hence, it reduced to 7 primary factors.

STRUCTURE OF INTELLECT MODEL (SOI)

• J.P. Guilford, an American psychologist, and his associates developed the concept of Structure of intellect
model (SOI). It may be considered as the most comprehensive theory of intelligence.

• He suggested that human intelligence is composed of three dimensions: OPERATIONS, CONTENTS and
PRODUCTS.

• Hence, this theory is also known as Tridimensional theory of intelligence.

• Operation: it denotes the way of processing of knowledge or the act of thinking. Through this parameter
knowledge is accumulated or gathered by the individual.

• Content: it denotes what the individual knows. In other words, the term in which way we think.

• Product: it refers to the end result. When an operation is applied to a certain kind of content, the ideas or
results we come up with is known as products.

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 OPERATIONS (SIX FACTORS)
1. COGNITION – Understanding or comprehending the information.

2. MEMORY RECORDING – Encoding information.

3. MEMORY RETENTION – Ability to recall information.

4. COVERGENT THINKING – Ability to produce single solution based on the information.

5. DIVERGENT THINKING – Ability to generate multiple solutions based on the information provided.

6. EVALUATION – Ability to judge according to the accuracy, goodness, suitability or workability of the
solution according to the problem.

CONTENTS (FIVE FACTORS)

1. VISUAL – Information represented visually.

2. AUDITORY – Information represented in auditory form.

3. SEMANTIC – Information in the form of verbal meanings and ideas.

4. SYMBOLIC – Information represented by means of symbols and signs.

5. BEHAVIOURAL – Information represented in the form of behaviours/ actions of other people or

organisms.

PRODUCTS (SIX FACTORS)

1. UNITS – A single item information

2. CLASSES – A group of units having a common property or attributes forms a class.

3. RELATIONS - Information reflecting relation between two or more things.

4. SYSTEMS – Information involving a number of parts / units as a complex system.

5. TRANSFORMATIONS – It involves some sort of changes.

6. IMPLICATIONS – Involving possibilities offered by a piece of information. E.g.- predictions,

inferences, consequences, etc.

• Guilford divided intelligence into 6X6X5= 180 factors in this model.

• This model provides the most comprehensive classification of mental abilities. Yet, it suggests a very complex
nature of intelligence. According to this model, there is no single test which may be considered as a fair
indicator of intelligence. It requires a no. of tests to measure one’s intelligence, which is highly time
consuming. Besides this, its complex nature demands more serious investigations to simplify this model. This
will help to frame more accurate methods of measuring an individual’s intellectual capacity.

• EXAMPLE: If a person is given a list of 20 unrelated words to study and after sometime he is asked to recall.
Here, the content is semantic as it involves meaningful words; operation is memory retention and memory
recording; product is units as the given words were unrelated.

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 CRITICISM:
• It suggests a very complex nature of intelligence.
• According to this model there is no single test by which intelligence of an individual can be measured rather
several tests are needed to measure intelligence of a single person. Hence, it is time consuming.
• Trained, professional and serious researchers are required to simplify the complex nature of this theory to frame
more accurate methods of measuring intelligence.

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 FLUID AND CRYSTALLIZED INTELLIGENCE

Raymond Cattell proposed the theory of Fluid and Crystallized Intelligence. According to Cattell, two major
clusters of mental abilities exist in human beings. One is Fluid intelligence and another one is Crystallized
intelligence.

FLUID INTELLIGENCE
• It refers to our largely inherited abilities to think and reason in sense it determines the limit of our information
processing capabilities.

• It is the mental capacity of an individual which is required for learning and problem-solving. It is depended
on neurological development and is relatively free from the influences of education and culture.

• It is derived from genetic and biological factors. It is less influenced by training and experience.

• It is put to use when facing new situations, strange situations, requiring adaptation, reasoning, problem-
solving and identifying relationships. It reaches full development by end of adolescence.

• Fluid intelligence involves formation of new concepts, ideas and reasons. It is innate and unlearned.

CRYSTALLIZED INTELLIGENCE

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• It refers to the accumulated knowledge, information which we store over a life time of experience. The
application of skills and knowledge to solve specific problems that one acquires. It is the outcome of
experience acting on our fluid intelligence.

• It is not the function of one’s neurological development and hence, it is not innate or unlearned like fluid
intelligence.

• It depends on culture, training, education. It involves one’s acquired fund of general information, skills and
different task in one’s life.

• It is known for its evolution through experience, training and interaction with one’s environment over years. it
is found to continue to increase throughout one’s life span.

• This concept helped to develop various intelligence tests such as Cattell’s Culture Fair Test and Raven’s
Progressive Matrices.

CRITICISM:
• This theory laid much importance on the general ability of human beings.
• It doesn’t throw light on the specific factor which determines the uniqueness of the intelligence level.

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 INFORMATION PROCESSING APPROACH
MODERN THEORIES OF INTELLIGENCE

TRIARCHIC THEORY
Robert Sternberg (1985), an American psychologist proposed the concept of Triarchic theory of intelligence.

He defined intelligence is the ability to adapt, to shape and select environment to accomplish one’s goals and
those of one’s society and culture.

According to this theory there are three basic types of intelligence. They are as follows:

• Componential / Analytical intelligence

• Experiential / Creative intelligence

• Contextual / Practical intelligence

COMPONENTIAL / ANALYTICAL INTELLIGENCE

• It involves the abilities to think critically and analytically. It is a ability to break problems down into
components, analyze it and then provide solutions to it.

• This intelligence has three components, each serving a different function.

• First is the Knowledge Acquisition component. It responsible for learning and acquiring the ways of doing
various things.

• Second is the Meta / Higher order component. It involves planning regarding what to do and how to do.

• Third is the Performance component. It involves actually doing things.

• For example- scientists are higher on this aspect of intelligence.

• Persons high on his intelligence usually score well on standard test of academic potential and make
excellent students. They are also known as ‘BOOK SMARTS’.

EXPERIENTIAL / CREATIVE INTELLIGENCE

• It involves insight, ability to generate new ideas.

• It helps the individuals to find a solution to a problem using previous experiences. It also helps to solve
similar kinds of problems in novel ways across different situations.
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• It is also used when an individual has to act impromptu in a situation that does not allow any time to think
properly.

• Sternberg splits the role of experience into two parts: novelty and automation.

• A novel situation is one that has not been experienced before. People that are adept at managing a novel
situation can take the task and find new ways of solving it that the majority of people would not notice.

• A process that has been automated has been performed multiple times and can now be done with little or no
extra thought. Once a process is automatized, it can be run in parallel with the same or other processes. The
problem with novelty and automation is that being skilled in one component does not ensure that you are
skilled in the other.

• This kind of intelligence is found in many scientific geniuses and inventors.

CONTEXTUAL / PRACTICAL INTELLIGENCE

• It is the most interesting of all.

• Persons high on this dimension are strong in practical and adaptive sense. In other words, they are high in
solving the problems of daily life.

• They find their solutions through the three processes of:

a) Adapting to the environment.

b) Modifying the existing environment.

c) Selecting a more favourable environment.

• Through the three processes of adaptation, shaping, and selection, individuals create an ideal fit between
themselves and their environment.

• Adaptation occurs when one makes a change within oneself in order to better adjust to one's surroundings.
For example, when the weather changes and temperatures drop, people adapt by wearing extra layers of
clothing to remain warm.

• Shaping occurs when one changes their environment to better suit one's needs. A teacher may invoke the
new rule of raising hands to speak to ensure that the lesson is taught with least possible disruption.

• The process of selection is undertaken when a completely new alternate environment is found to replace the
previous, unsatisfying environment to meet the individual's goals. For instance, immigrants leave their lives
in their homeland countries where they endure economic and social hardships and go to other countries in
search of a better and less strained life.

• The effectiveness with which an individual fits to his or her environment and contends with daily situations
reflects degree of intelligence.

• They are STREET SMART people with excellent BUSINESS SENSE.

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 MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCE THEORY

Howard Gardner argued that there exist several types of intelligence. Each of these intelligences are
independent of each other. This means if one person exhibits one type of intelligence, it does not necessarily
indicate high or low on other types of intelligence. Gardner originally listed six types of intelligence, to which,
gradually more types of intelligence were added, and now there are at least ten types of intelligence listed in
the theory.

1. LINGUISTIC INTELLIGENCE: This refers to well-developed verbal skills and sensitivity to the sound,
meaning and rhythm of words- both verbal and written. Persons high on this intelligence is also referred as
‘word smart’. It is high in authors, poets, orators, etc.
2. LOGICAL- MATHEMATICAL INTELLIGENCE: This refers to the ability to think conceptually and
abstractly. It also includes the capacity to solve logical and numerical problems. People high on this type of
intelligence can think logically and critically and can engage in abstract reasoning and also can manipulate
symbols to solve mathematical problems. It is often found high in scientists, engineers, computer
programmers, etc.

3. SPATIAL-VISUAL INTELLIGENCE: It refers to the abilities involved in forming, using and transforming
mental images. The person high on this intelligence can easily represent the spatial world in mind. Pilots,
sailors, sculptors, painters, architects, interior decorators and surgeons are likely to have highly developed
spatial intelligence.

4. BODILY KINESTHETIC INTELLIGENCE: It refers to the ability to control one’s body movements and to
handle objects skillfully. It consists of the use of the whole body or portions of it for display or construction of
products and problem-solving. Athletes, surgeons, dancers, actors, sport-persons, gymnasts etc. are likely to
have such kind of intelligence.

5. MUSICAL INTELLIGENCE: This refers to the ability to produce and appreciate rhythm, pitch, timbre and
tone. Persons high on this intelligence are very sensitive to sound and vibrations and in creating new patterns
of sounds. It is demonstrated in composers, concert conductors, musicians, musical instrument makers, etc.

6. INTERPERSONAL INTELLIGENCE: It is the capacity to detect and respond appropriately to the moods,
motivations and desires of others and interact with others effectively. Hence, this is the skill of understanding
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 the motives, feelings and behaviour of other people so as to bond into a comfortable relationship with others.
Psychologists, counsellors, politicians, social workers, teachers, religious leaders, etc. are likely to possess
high interpersonal intelligence.

7. INTRAPERSONAL INTELLIGENCE: It refers to the knowledge of one’s internal strengths and limitations
and using that knowledge to effectively relate to others. Persons high on this ability have finer sensibilities
regarding their identity, human existence and meaning of life. It is demonstrated in philosophers, spiritual
leaders, etc.

8. NATURALISTIC INTELLIGENCE: This involves complete awareness of our relationship with the natural
world. It is useful in recognizing the beauty of different species of flora and fauna, and making subtle
discriminations in the natural world. it is seen in botanists, hunters, farmers, tourists, ecologists, zoologists,
bird watchers, etc.

9. EXISTENTIAL INTELLIGENCE: It refers to the sensitivity and capacity to tackle philosophical questions
about human existence like – What is the meaning of life? How did we get here?

10. SPIRITUAL INTELLIGENCE: It involves a concern with cosmic or existential issues. It is by virtue of this
intelligence that a person can attain spirituality, i.e. a person can develop a sense of connection with the
universe and also search for meaning in life.

Gardner stated there is a wide variety of cognitive abilities as expressed by different types of intelligence but
very weak correlations are found among them. This theory has been widely criticized by mainstream
psychologists because it lacks empirical or factual evidence and is mostly dependent on subjective judgement.

CRITICISM:
• There is a wide range of cognitive abilities as expressed by different types of intelligence. But very weak
correlations are found among them.
• It lacks empirical or factual evidence and has high dependence on subjective judgement.

MEASUREMENT OF INTELLIGENCE
• In 1905, Alfred Binet and Theodore Simon, made the first successful attempt to formally measure intelligence.
• In 1908, when the scale was revised, they gave the concept of MENTAL AGE (MA), which is a measure of a
person’s intellectual development relative to people of his/her age group.
• CHRONOLOGICAL AGE (CA) is the biological age from birth.
• A bright child’s MA is more than his/her CA; for a dull child, MA is below the CA.
• In 1912, William Stern, a German psychologist, devised the concept of INTELLIGENCE QUOTIENT (IQ).
IQ refers to mental age divided by chronological age and multiplied by 100.

IQ = MA / CA X 100 [Where, MA = Mental Age; CA= Chronological Age]

• The number 100 is used as a multiplier to avoid the decimal point.

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CONSTANCY OF INTELLIGENCE QUOTIENT (IQ):
According to psychologists, an individual’s IQ remains constant throughout his life. In spite of education,
experience and growth in age, the IQ of an individual remains more or less the same. After the age of 16, the
growth of intelligence stops. So, the CA should be taken as 16 years, even for adults over 16 years of age.

Different psychologists have conducted research on this aspect. They have concluded that for average people,
the CEILING AGE for the growth of intelligence is 16 years.

LEVELS OF INTELLIGENCE / CLASSIFICATION OF INTELLIGENCE

It is evident that everyone is born with some intelligence, but everyone’s intellectual capacity is not equal. Some
have less intelligence whereas some have greater intellectual capacity. The actual criteria and measure of these
intellectual differences were not revealed until various intelligence tests were developed.

All intelligence tests determine the IQ of a person which is the numerical measure of the intellectual capacity
of that person.

The classification mentioned in Wechsler Intelligence Scale developed by David Wechsler in 1939 is
considered to be the standard way of classification of intelligence. The IQ range and classification of this scale
is mentioned below:

IQ RANGE IQ CLASSIFICATION PERCENTAGE IN THE

POPULATION
130 and above Very Superior 2.2
120 – 129 Superior 6.7
110 – 119 High Average 16.1
90 – 109 Average 50.0
80 – 89 Low Average 16.1
70 – 79 Borderline 6.7
69 and below Extremely Low 2.2
IQ scores are distributed in the population in such a way that the scores of most people tend to fall in the middle
range of the distribution. Only a few people have either very high or very low scores. The frequency
distribution for the IQ scores tends to approximate a bell-shaped curved, called Normal Probability Curve
(NPC). This type of distribution is symmetrical around the central value, called the Mean.

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 VARIATION OF INTELLIGENCE:
All persons do not have same intellectual capacity; some are exceptionally bright and some are below average.
The persons in the first group are called Intellectually Gifted; those in the second group are called Intellectually
Disabled (Mentally Retarded).

INTELLECTUAL GIFTEDNESS:
• Intellectually gifted individuals show higher performance because of their outstanding potentialities.
• Giftedness is exceptional general ability shown in superior performance in a wide variety of areas.
• Talent is a narrower term and refers to remarkable ability in a specific field (e.g. spiritual, social, aesthetic, etc.).
The highly talented are sometimes called ‘prodigies’.
• Gifted children show early signs of intellectual superiority. Even during infancy and early childhood, they show
larger attention span, good recognition memory, preference for novelty, sensitivity to environmental changes,
and early appearance of language skills.

COMMON CHARACTERISTICS OF GIFTED INDIVIDUALS:

Some common characteristics of gifted individuals are given below:

• They are highly sensitive and unusual alertness even in infancy.

• They are rapid learners with the ability to organize thoughts quickly.

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• They have excellent memory and vivid imagination.
• They use large vocabulary and complex sentence structures. Use of advanced comprehension of words,
metaphors and abstract ideas.
• Their thoughts are abstract, complex, logical and insightful.
• They have wide range of interests and asks probing questions.
• They learn basic skills quickly or with little practice.
• They are concerned with social and political issues and injustices.
• They possess longer attention span and high concentration capacity.
• They have high observation power and quick response pattern.
• Their achievements are not limited only to academics, but also extends in various other fields like – music,
artistry, sports activities, human relations, etc.
• They are keen and/or have unusual sense of humour.
• Very often they are pre-occupied with their own thoughts and are day-dreamers.
• They have advanced logical thinking, questioning and problem-solving behaviour.
• They show high speed in processing information.
• They have superior generalization and discrimination ability.
• They have advanced level of original and creative thinking.
• They have high level of intrinsic motivation and self-esteem.
• They have independent and non-conformist thinking.

NEEDS OF GIFTED INDIVIDUALS:

Like every other individual, gifted individual also need security, love and care, social recognition etc. They also
have some more needs like -

• Need for satisfying curiosity and interests.

• Need for knowledge.
• Need for manifestation of creativity.
• Need for manifestation of exceptional capabilities.
• Need for continuous activity.
• Need for self- expression and self-establishment at a tender age.

PROBLEMS WITH GIFTED INDIVIDUALS:

Inadequate satisfaction of the various needs lead to some problems among gifted individuals. Some are as
follows:

• Emotional imbalances or emotional insecurities due to inadequate satisfaction of their various needs.
• Frustration, anxiety, irritability, depression and pronounced social isolation.
• Difficulty in making friends.
• Demotivation and low self-esteem among them are common.
• Social rejection due to inter-personal problems and increased level of perfectionism.
• Being misguided by unnecessary praises for achieving tasks, accomplishment of which, seem to be easier for
the gifted children.

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MEASURES TO SOLVE THE PROBLEMS OF GIFTED INDIVIDUALS:
To reach their full potential, gifted children require special attention and different educational programmes
beyond those provided to normal children in regular classrooms. They may include life enrichment programmes
like sharpening their skills in productive thinking, planning, decision-making and communication.

The four main measures that can help them to satisfy their educational areas are as follows:

❖ Selection:

a) To evaluate academic achievements in the early school years.

b) To listen to the teacher’s opinions about these children.
c) To measure intellectual capacities through IQ tests.
❖ Segregation:
a) These children are to be treated separately from the other children in the classroom.
b) To develop special school for the gifted children.
❖ Acceleration:
a) To admit in schools earlier than normal children.
b) To make arrangements for double promotions or early promotion to higher classes.
c) Not to apply any marks/ gradation system with the progress in the study as these may limit their creativity
and exploration.
d) To grow separate and advanced curriculum.
❖ Enrichment: Initiating special training and advanced academic program. This may include
participation in advanced co-curricular activities, increased facility of library for acquiring knowledge, using
advanced project work techniques, developing progressive educational tour programmes, etc.

INTELLECTUAL DISABILITY/ BACKWARDNESS:

Those individuals who show intellectual deficiency are termed as ‘Intellectually Disabled’. There is a wide
variation among the intellectually disabled. Earlier intellectual disability was popularly known as ‘Mental
Retardation’.

The American Association on Mental Deficiency (AAMD) views intellectually disability as significantly sub-
average general intellectual functioning existing concurrently with deficits in adaptive behaviour and
manifested during the developmental period.

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 BASIC FEATURES:

• Firstly, in order to be judged as intellectually disabled, a person must show significantly sub-average
intellectual functioning. Persons having IQs below 70 are judged to have sub-average intelligence.
• Secondly, deficits in adaptive behaviour. It refers to a person’s non-capacity to be independent and deal
effectively with one’s environment.
• Thirdly, the deficits must be observed during the developmental period that is between 0 – 18 years of age.

CLASSIFICATION OF INTELLECTUALLY DISABLED/ BACKWARD

INDIVIDUALS:
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Version IV (DSM-IV) has classified intellectually
disabled/ backward individual into 5 categories those are as follows:
IQ RANGE IQ CLASSIFICATION PERCENTAGE IN THE
POPULATION
70 - 84 Borderline 6.7
55 - 69 Mild Intellectual deficiency / 85
Mental Retardation
40 – 54 Moderate Intellectual deficiency / 10
Mental Retardation
25 – 39 Severe Intellectual deficiency / 3-4
Mental Retardation
Below 25 Profound Intellectual deficiency / 1-2
Mental Retardation

CHARACTERISTICS:
FUNCTIONAL MILD MODERATE SEVERE PROFOUND
AREAS INTELLECTUAL INTELLECTUAL INTELLECTUAL INTELLECTUAL
DEFICIENCY / DEFICIENCY / DEFICIENCY / DEFICIENCY /
MENTAL MENTAL MENTAL MENTAL
RETARDATION RETARDATION RETARDATION RETARDATION
IQ and IQ: 55 – 69 IQ: 40 – 54 IQ: 25 – 39 IQ: Below 25
Intellectual Comparable to an Comparable to an Comparable to an Comparable to an
Level average 10-year-old in average 6-year-old average 4-year-old average 2-year-old
adult life. in adult life. in adult life. in adult life.

Self-help Skills Feeds and dresses self Faces difficulties Partial to no skills, No skills.
and cares for own and requires but some can care
toilet needs. training but can for personal needs
learn adequate self- on limited basis.
help skills.
Speech and Receptive and Receptive and Can understand Have severe speech
Communication expressive language is expressive instructions but disturbance, in both
adequate, some speech language is have difficulty in understanding and
disturbances may be adequate, has expressing expressing.
present; Understands speech problems. themselves due to
communication. speech retardation.
22
 Academics They are educable and They are trainable They lack academic Neither trainable
trainable individuals; individuals only; skills; They are nor educable.
Slow learners in They have neither trainable
school, repeat early inadequate nor educable.
grades. academic skills and
are not educable.
Social Skills They can have friends Capable of making Do not have any Do not have any
and can learn to adjust friends but has social interaction; social interaction;
quickly. difficulty in many need constant need complete care,
social situations. supervision and are supervision and
often institutionalization.
institutionalized.
Motor Skill Delayed development Appear clumsy in Have severe motor Shows gross motor
Development in early life, movements, do not retardation from incoordination,
developmental have motor birth, never master unable to protect
milestones are around coordination. the basic skills of themselves, usually
1 year delayed than feeding, dressing or have physical
average child of same bowel control; deformities,
age. often show motor convulsive seizures.
handicaps.
Vocational Can hold a job; Can do Can do work in Generally, no Completely
Adjustments unskilled work, lack sheltered employment; dependent on others
innovation and environment under Completely and need constant
enthusiasm. constant dependent on care.
supervision. others and need
constant care; but
with proper care,
timely intervention
and specialized
training, can do
manual labour.
Adult Living Usually marries, has Usually does not No marriage or No marriage or
children; needs help marry or have children; always children; always
during stress. children; dependent on dependent on others.
dependent. others.
Mortality Rate Normally live to full Normally live to be High mortality rate Life span is usually
grown adult life; needs adults dependent as they are short due to low
help during stress. on others. susceptible to resistance.
diseases.

MEASURES TO SOLVE THE PROBLEMS OF INTELLECTUALLY DISABLED/

MENTALLY RETARDED INDIVIDUALS:
• Regular health check-ups and treatment.
• Changing and modifying the home, family and school environment.
• Engaging mentally retarded individuals in special education or special schools under the guidance of specially
trained instructors.
• Taking personal attention and care. Using various teaching aids to enforce the teaching-learning experience
through different sensory routes.
23
• Launching cumulative report card system in the school.
• Controlling and minimizing the negative elements like criticisms, discriminations, discouragements, etc., from
the environment.
• Counselling and behaviour therapy are other ways of management for the intellectually disabled individuals.
they are generally treated in group settings. The goal is to remove – short attention span, low frustration
tolerance, impulse control and self-esteem.

CLASSIFICATION OF INTELLIGENCE TESTS:

NATURE OF NATURE OF NATURE OF TIME LIMIT

TASKS ADMINISTERING SCORING AND LEVEL OF
PROCEDURE PROCEDURE DIFFICULTY

VERBAL PERFORMANCE AGE SCALE POINT SCALE

TEST TEST

POWER TEST SPEED TEST

INDIVIDUAL TEST GROUP TEST

Modern intelligence tests are classified on the basis of four different aspects as follows:

1. Nature of tasks: According to the nature of tasks/ problems that are to be solved in the tests, there are two
types –

(i) Language based tests / Verbal Tests in which every step of questioning and answering is based on language.
An individual’s performance in the verbal test is influenced by his/her school learning experience. Subjects are
required to give verbal responses either orally or in a written form. Hence, verbal test can be administered only
to literate people. Example- Binet Simon Test, Army Alpha Test, etc.

(ii) Performance Tests / Non-Verbal Tests in which the subject has to perform something or manipulate some
concrete materials without much use of the person’s language ability. The effect of school learning experience is
limited or negligible on the non-verbal tests. It can be administered to persons from different cultures. Example-
Army Beta Test, Cattell’s Culture Fair Test, Koh’s Block Design, etc.

2. Nature of administering procedure: There are two types:

(i) Individual test: This type of tests can be administered to only one individual at a time. It requires one-to -one
consultation. These tests help to get more input about the subject. In it, it is possible for the tester to understand
whether the subject has understood all the instructions or not. It is comfortable for slow learners or retarded
people. Example- Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS), Alexander Pass Along Test, etc.

24
(ii) Group tests: It can be administered to a large group of people simultaneously. These tests do not help to get
more input about the subject. In it, it is not possible for the tester to understand whether the subject has
understood all the instructions or not. In group tests, the subject might not give genuine responses. Slow
learners or retarded people feel more confused in a group test and hence perform badly. Example of a group test
– Raven’s Progressive Matrices (RPM)

3. Nature of scoring procedure: It can also be classified into two types-

(i) Age Scale: The scoring method of these tests involves awarding credit for correct responses in age. Then the
scores are compared with the individual’s chronological age to derive his level of intelligence. Example-
Standford Binet Intelligence Test awards two months credit for each correct response.

(ii) Point Scale: Here, the score of an individual is measured directly from his test performance in the given test.
Here points are awarded for every correct response. Example- Army Alpha Test, Army Beta Test, WAIS, etc.

4. Time limit and level of difficulty: It can also be classified into two types-

(i) Power Tests: In these tests, people are given a significant amount of time to finish but the questions are more
difficult. Therefore, the speed in the performance of the testee is not considered here.

(ii) Speed Tests: It consists of a large number of easy questions which have to answered within a small amount
of time. The goal of the test is to see how fast an individual can solve problems.

All the intelligence tests measure intelligence in the terms of Intelligent Quotient (IQ).

25
 STANFORD-BINET INTELLIGENCE TEST
The first successful individual intelligence test was developed by French psychologist Alfred Binet along with
Simon in 1905. Later on, Lewis Terman of Stanford University translated the Binet-Simon test into English. It
came to be known as Stanford Binet Test. Several revisions had been made by Terman, His co-worker Merrill
and others.

❖ DESCRIPTION OF THE TEST: The Stanford Binet test has 4 cognitive area scores related to 4
cognitive domains. They are as follows:

1. VERBAL REASONING: This area score measures the testee’s verbal knowledge and understanding that
he/she has acquired from his school and home environment. It shows his/her ability to use verbal skills to new
situations. The subtests by which this area is measured are –
(i) Vocabulary test
(ii) Comprehension test
(iii) Absurdities test
(iv) Verbal Relations test

2. ABSTRACT / VISUAL REASONING: This area score indicates the testee’s analytical skills, his/her
ability to visualize patterns, visual/motor skills, skills to solve problems with reasoning. The subtests by which
this area is measured are –

(i) Pattern Analysis test

(ii) Copying test
(iii) Matrices test
(iv) Paper-Folding -and -Cutting test

3. QUANTITATIVE REASONING: This area score measures mathematical operations skills, ability to
manipulate numerical problems, concentration on tasks, knowledge and ability to apply numerical concepts.
The subtests by which this area is measured are –

(i) Quantitative test

(ii) Number Series test
(iii) Equation Building test

26
4. SHORT-TERM MEMORY: This area score measures concentration skills, short-term memory and
sequencing skills. In one subtest measuring visual short-term memory, the testee is first shown pictures of a
bead design. He/she is then asked to reproduce it from memory. The subtests by which this area is measured are:
(i) Bead Memory test
(ii) Memory for Sentences test
(iii)Memory for Digits test
(iv) Memory for Objects test

❖ These domains together yield a composite score. Items on each domain together yield factor or area
scores. The composite score represents the ‘general mental ability’ or ‘g’ and is the summation of all
subtest scores. The ‘g’ is a person’s ability to solve novel problems and is the overall estimate of an
individual’s intellectual functioning.
❖ The test has 15 subtests, divided into 4 area scores. All age group do not get all the subtests but all
the age groups get at least 6 subtests.
❖ The subtests are - Vocabulary, Comprehension, Absurdities, Verbal Relations, Pattern Analysis, Copying,
Matrices, Paper-Folding -and -Cutting, Quantitative, Number Series, Equation Building, Bead Memory,
Memory for Sentences, Memory for Digits and Memory for Objects.
❖ The number of tests administered and the general level of test difficulty is dependent on the test taker’s age
and performance.
❖ The highest age level at which the testee answers all the questions correctly is taken to be the Basal Age of
the testee. From the Basal Age level, the subtests of the different age groups are given to the testee.
❖ The subtests are continued till the age level where the testee cannot answer any item correctly. This level is
known as the Ceiling Age of the testee.
❖ The testee is awarded a credit of 2 months for every correct response. Hence, the MA is calculated as
- Basal Age + 2 months x (number of correct responses above the basal age).
❖ It takes 2 hours and 30 minutes to administer the test. The number of correct responses is converted into
Standard Age Score (SAS) based on the CA of the testee.
❖ The test has a mean of 100 and SD of 16. The test scores provide an estimated level of the child’s mental
functioning. Stanford – Binet Scale in an example of Age scale test.

LIMITATIONS:
• It is heavily dependent on school learning and cultural factors.
• Therefore, individuals coming from different cultures other than the test’s original cultural group will score
low on the test.

27
 WECHSLER ADULT INTELLIGENCE SCALE (WAIS):
David Wechsler designed a set of tests, including both verbal and non-verbal/performance items. He was the
first to devise a series of tests designed for specific age groups. It is more popularly used compared to Stanford-
Binet scale. It is an advanced scale and the successive edition of Wechsler scale of Intelligence are as follows:

❖ WAIS - IV (WECHSLER ADULT INTELLIGENCE SCALE – Edition IV): It is designed to assess the
intelligence level of adults age ranging from 17 years and above. Presently the fourth version of the test is
being popularly used world-wide.
❖ WISC – IV (WECHSLER INTELLIGENCE SCALE FOR CHILDREN – Edition IV): It is designed to
assess the intelligence level of school going children age ranging between 6 years to 16 years.
❖ WPPSI – IV (WECHSLER PRE – SCHOOL AND PRIMARY SCALE OF INTELLIGENCE - Edition
IV): It is designed to assess the intelligence level of the pre-school children age ranging between 2 years to
6 years.

SUBTESTS OF WAIS

VERBAL IQ PERFORMANCE IQ

VERBAL WORKING PERCEPTUAL PROCESSING

COMPREHENSION MEMORY REASONING SPEED
INDEX INDEX INDEX INDEX

• VOCABULARY • ARITHMATIC •BLOCK DESIGN • SYMBOL SEARCH

• SIMILARITIES • DIGIT SPAN •MATRIX REASONING • CODING
• INFORMATION • LETTER – •VISUAL PUZZLES • CANCELLATION
• COMPREHENSION NUMBER •FIGURE WEIGHTS
SEQUENCING •PICTURE COMPLETION

DESCRIPTION OF THE TEST:

• WAIS – IV consists of 15 subtests (12 subtests for adults over 69 years of age). They are organized into 4
index scales representing different cognitive domains – Verbal Comprehension, Perceptual Reasoning,
Working Memory and Processing Speed.
• The index scale score yields the Full-Scale IQ (FSIQ).
• Core subtests are typically used to derive the Composite Score (i.e. the index scores for each cognitive
domain and FSIQ).
• Supplemental subtests may be administered in addition to the core subtests to provide additional clinical
information. They may be also administered in place of core subtests in case one such subtest has been
spoiled or invalidated.
• WAIS is an example of Point Scale.

28
 NAME OF DESCRIPTION EXAMPLES
SUBTESTS
A. SUBTESTS FOR DETERMINING VERBAL COMPREHENSION
1. Similarities The testee is required to
(Core subtest) describe how two common
objects or concepts are
similar. It measures verbal
concept formation, abstract
verbal reasoning,
categorical thinking and
ability to distinguish
between non-essential and
essential features.

2. Vocabulary It is primarily composed of

(Core subtest) verbal items, but picture
items are also included to
extend the purview of the
subtest. It measures verbal
concept formation,
language development,
word knowledge and long-
term memory.

3. Information Consists of questions

(Core subtest) addressing a broad range of
general knowledge. It
measures one’s stores of
knowledge, long-term
memory and retrieval,
verbal comprehension and
crystallized intelligence.

29
4. Comprehension Items are based on an
(Supplementary understanding of basic
subtest) principles and social
situations, rather than
factual knowledge. It
measures verbal
conceptualization, verbal
expression, practical
knowledge, social
judgement, crystallized
intelligence and common
sense.
B. SUBTESTS FOR DETERMINING WORKING MEMORY
5. Digit Span It includes three tasks-
(Core subtest) i. Forward task: the testee
repeat numbers spoken by
the examiner.
ii. Backward task: the
testee need to repeat
numbers in the reverse
order to what that is
presented.
iii. Sequencing task: the
testee require to sequence
numbers in ascending order.
This subtest mainly
measures working memory
along with attention,
auditory processing and
mental manipulation.
6. Arithmetic The testee need to mentally
(Core subtest) solve arithmetical word
problems. It measures
working memory, mental
manipulation, attention,
concentration, sequential
processing and numerical
reasoning.
7. Letter – The testee need to recall the
Number – numbers in ascending order,
Sequencing and then the letters in
(Supplemental alphabetical order. It
subtest) measures I mental
manipulation, attention,
concentration and short –
term auditory memory.
C. SUBTESTS FOR DETERMINING PERCEPTUAL REASONING

30
8. Block Design The testee require to
(Core subtest) reproduce pictured designs
using specially designed
blocks. It measures non -
verbal reasoning, analysis
and synthesis; visual
perception and
organization; and visual –
motor coordination.

9. Matrix The testee completes a

Reasoning matrix or serial reasoning
(Core subtest) problem. It measures fluid
intelligence, visuo-spatial
ability, simultaneous
processing and perceptual
organization.

10. Visual Puzzles The testee selects response

(Core subtest) options, which could be
combined to reproduce a
geometric image. It
measures perceptual
reasoning, visuo-spatial
ability, analysis and
synthesis; and simultaneous
processing.

11. Figure Testee selects the response

Weights option which would keep a
(Supplemental pictured scale in balance.
subtest) The weights are represented
by geometric shapes of
different colors. It measures
fluid reasoning, primarily
quantitative and analogical
reasoning.
12. Picture Testee need to identify the
Completion missing part of a pictured
(Supplemental object/scene. It measures
subtest) visual perception,
perceptual organization and
attention to visual detail.

31
 D. SUBTESTS FOR DETERMINING PROCESSING SPEED
13. Symbol It requires the testee to
Search search for two target
(Core subtest) symbols within a row of
symbols. It measures visuo-
motor processing speed,
short-term visual memory,
visual discrimination,
attention and
concentration.
14. Coding It requires the testee to copy
(Core subtest) simple symbols as fast as
possible, based on a key
which pairs number with
symbols. It measures visuo-
motor processing speed,
short term visual memory,
learning ability, cognitive
flexibility, attention,
concentration and
motivation.
15. Cancellation Testee need to search and
(Supplemental cancel the specific-colored
subtest) shapes (as instructed) from
among an array of colored
shapes. It measures visuo-
motor processing speed,
visual selective attention
and visual neglect.

SCORING:
• A number of scores are derived after administration of WAIS – IV.
• Each subtest provides a score which is scaled to a metric with a mean of 10 and SD of 3.
• The sum of scaled scores of all the subtests within a domain is used to compute the corresponding index score.
• Four index scores are derived, viz – the Verbal Comprehension Index (VCI), the Perceptual Reasoning Index
(PRI), the Working Memory Index (WMI) and the Processing Speed Index (PSI).
• A Full-Scale IQ (FSIQ) is derived after summation of all the scaled scores of all the subtests of all four
domains.
• All of the composite scores, along with index scores and the FSIQ, are scaled to a metric with a mean of 100
and a SD of 15.

32
 LIMITATION:
• Some critics are of the view that the norms of WAIS – IV may not be applicable for ethnic minorities or persons
from lower socio – economic backgrounds.
• Scoring pattern of the scale is very complex which increases the chances of committing errors by the examiners.
• It is not clearly mentioned whether the supplemental subtests, when substituted for core subtests, will affect the
FSIQ or index score.
• Certain degree of subjectivity is present while scoring the items of Vocabulary, Similarities and Comprehension.
• It doesn’t measure motivation, creativity and success in dealing with people which are certain important factors
of an individuals live.

CULTURE FAIR TEST

Intelligence tests can be Culture-fair or Culture-biased.

CULTURE-BIASED INTELLIGENCE TEST:

• Many intelligence tests show a bias to the culture in which they are developed. The test content, language and
scoring criteria in majority of the test are culturally bound. The tests in which such culturally loaded items are
present are called Culture-biased tests.
• Tests developed in America and Europe represent an urban and middle-class cultural ethos. Hence, educated
middle-class white subjects generally perform well on those tests.
• The items do not respect the cultural perspectives of Asia and Africa and of similar places.
• The norms for these tests are also drawn from western cultural groups.
• Such test underrates the testee’s intelligence by not providing equal opportunity; depriving the test takers
coming from different cultural background.

CULTURE – FAIR INTELLIGENCE TEST:

• Psychologists have tried to design a test that are culture-fair or culturally appropriate, i.e. one that does not
discriminate against individuals belonging to different cultures.
• When a test is standardized for application to all cultures without any cultural bias, it is called a Culture-fair or
Culture-Free test.
• In such tests, items are constructed in a manner that they assess experiences common to all cultures or have
questions in which language usage is not required.
• Non-verbal/ Performance tests help reduce the cultural bias usually associated with verbal tests.

33
 CATTELL’S CULTURE FAIR TEST:

Raymond Cattell devised a precise measurement of intelligence and published a test on 1930. The test has gone
through several revisions. 1949 revision adopted the format consisting of 4 subtest – Series, Classification,
Matrices and Conditions. Slight adjustment in the difficulty level and sequencing of few items were primarily
done in the revised format of 1961.

TEST DESCRIPTION:
• The test mainly measures the fluid intelligence of an individual.
• It has 3 scales comprising – non-verbal visual puzzles.
• Scale I has 8 subtests. They comprise of maze, copying symbols, identifying similar drawings and other non-
verbal tasks.
• Scale II and III have 4 subtests. They are as follows –
i. Completing a series of sequential drawings.
ii. Identifying the odd drawing from a set of drawings (Classification subtest).
iii. Completing a matrix of designs or patterns (Matrix subtest).
iv. Identifying the geometric design which suits the given specific condition (Condition subtest).

SCORING:
• The raw scores are obtained for each subtest with the help of a scoring key given in the manual. They are then
converted into standard scores.
• It has SD of 24.

USES:
• It is a performance test. It measures the cognitive abilities of the testee without the influence of social and
cultural learning.
• It helps in the identification of learning problems and also helps in making more reliable and informed decisions
regarding the children who need special education.
• It can also be used in selecting students for accelerated educational programs and vocational training for both
students and adults.

34
 RAVEN’S PROGRESSIVE MATRICES (RPM)

Raven’s Progressive Matrices (RPM) is a non-verbal, culture fair, group test. It was originally developed by
John C. Raven in 1938. As a culture fair test, it may be used globally. It being a non-verbal test doesn’t require
any language skill. So, difference in language proficiency does not affect scores in this test.

TEST DESCRIPTION:
• RPM is constructed for adults and children. in each matrix, the subject is asked to identify the missing element
from the given options that completes a pattern.
• There are 6 to 8 options given to choose from. There is no time limit to complete the task.
• It checks the individual’s eductive and reproductive ability.

VERSION: There are 3 different forms of RPM for participants of different abilities:
Standard Progressive Matrices:
• This original form of the matrices, made for average 6 to 8 years old. It has 5 sets (from A to E) of 12 items
each numbered as A1 to A12, B1 to B12, etc. The items in each set are organized at an increasing difficulty
level. The items are presented in black ink on a white background.

Coloured Progressive Matrices:

35
• These matrices are used for younger children, the elderly and for people who have moderate to severe learning
difficulties. They have sets A and B of the Standard Progressive Matrices in coloured format. Additionally, it has
another set of 12 items stated as AB between the sets A and B. Most of the items have a coloured background to
make them visually stimulating for the target group.
• However, the last few items of Set B are presented in black ink against white background. If the participant
performs better than the tester’s expectations, then the participant is moved to do the set C, D, and E of the
Standard Progressive Matrices.

Advanced Progressive Matrices:

• These matrices are used for adolescents and adults who show the signs of being above average. It has 48
items.
• It is presented as Set I, which has 12 subsets, and Set II, which has 36 subsets.
• Items are presented in black ink on white background. The items in the set are arranged in increasing order of
difficulty.

UNDERLYING FACTOR:
RPM measures the two main components of general intelligence. These are -

• Eductive ability – It is the ability to think clearly and to make sense of a complex situation.
• Reproductive ability – It is the ability of storing and reproducing learnt information.

36
 EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE

• Emotional intelligence is a set of skills that underlie accurate appraisal, expression, and regulation of emotions.
It is the feeling side of intelligence.
• The concept of Emotional Intelligence was first introduced by Peter Salovey and John D Mayer. According to
them emotional intelligence is a form of social intelligence that involves the ability to monitor
one’s own and other’s feelings and emotions, to discriminate among them, and to use this
information to guide one’s thinking and action.
• Emotional Quotient (EQ) used to express emotional intelligence in the same way as IQ is used to express
intelligence.
• In simple terms, emotional intelligence refers to the ability to process emotional information accurately and
efficiently.
• It helps the individual to have a healthy interpersonal relationship with others around him, be it in his family,
friends, workplace or any other place.

CHARACTERISTICS OF A HIGH EQ PERSON:

• To perceive and be sensitive to your feelings and emotions.
• To perceive and be sensitive to various types of emotions in others by noting their body language, voice and
tone, and facial expressions.
• To relate one’s emotions to your thoughts so that you take them into account while solving problems and taking
decisions.
• To understand the powerful influence of the nature and intensity of one’s emotions.
• To control and regulate one’s emotions and their expressions while dealing with self and others to achieve
harmony and peace.

The concept of emotional intelligence is receiving a lot of attention among psychologists. It is said to be that
component in an individual that might help him to reduce stress and achieve more contentment and peace in his
life, both personally and professionally.

If emotional intelligence is properly inculcated in students, it would help them to achieve success academically
along with being prepared to face the challenges of the future adult life.

37
 CREATIVITY AND INTELLIGENCE
• One important debate in understanding the variations in creativity has been the relationship of creativity with
intelligence.
• An intelligence person would typically be able to grasp information quickly, comprehend instructions
accurately and reproduce the information gathered correctly. On the contrary, a creative person can improvise
novel and original ways of doing things which are often aesthetically very pleasing, they have an ability to think
out of the box and solve problems in a unique way.
• Terman, in 1920s, found that persons with high IQ were not necessarily creative. At the same time, creative
ideas could come from persons who did not have a very high IQ.
• Researchers have also found that both high and low level of creativity can be found in highly intelligent person
and also in persons with average intelligence.
• The same person, thus, can be creative as well as intelligent but it is not necessary that intelligent ones, in the
conventional sense, must be creative. Intelligence, therefore, by itself does not ensure creativity.
• Researchers have found that the relationship between creativity and intelligence is positive. All creative acts
require some minimum ability to acquire knowledge and capacity to comprehend, retain and retrieve.
• Hence, a certain level of intelligence is required for creativity but beyond that intelligence does not correlate
well with creativity.
• Creativity tests came into existence to assess variations in terms of the potential for creativity in contrast to
intelligence.
• Creativity tests involve divergent thinking and assess such abilities as ability to produce a variety of ideas, i.e.
ideas which are unique, ability to see new relationships between seemingly unrelated things, ability to guess
causes and consequences, ability to put things in a new context, etc.
• Since expression of creativity are varied, tests have been developed using different stimuli like words, figures,
actions and sounds.
• These tests measure general creative thinking abilities like – ability to think of a variety of ideas on a given
topic/ situation, alternative ways of looking at things, problems or situations, to guess causes and consequences,
to think of unusual ideas to improve and to use common objects, etc.
• There is creativity tests based on different areas like – literary creativity, scientific creativity, mathematical
creativity, etc.
• Some of the famous psychologists who developed creativity tests are Guilford, Torrance, Passi, and others.
Each test has a standardized procedure, a complete set of manuals, ad interpretation guide. These can be used
only after extensive training in administration and interpretation of test scores.

APTITUDE
• An aptitude is defined as a component of competency or a readiness for a certain kind of work at a certain level
without any prior learning experience.
• It refers to special abilities in a particular field of activity. It is a combination of characteristics that indicates an
individual’s capacity to acquire some specific knowledge or skill after training.
• Hence it is innate by nature. It is the natural potential of the individual which can be transformed into
achievement through proper training and practice.
• According to Freeman, an aptitude is a combination of characteristics indicative of an individual’s capacity to
acquire (with training) some specific knowledge, skill or set of organized responses, such as the ability to speak
language, to become a musician, to do mechanical work.
38
 NATURE:
• Aptitude may be considered as a special ability or capacity besides general intellectual ability.
• It helps an individual to acquire a required degree of mastery of achievements in specific fields.
• It is dependent on both heredity and environment.
• It is the potentiality to perform a specific activity.

APTITUDE TEST:
Aptitude tests are available in two forms – a) Independent/ Specialized aptitude test. b) Multiple/
Generalized aptitude test. Differential Aptitude test (DAT), General Aptitude Test Battery (GATB) and Armed
Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) are well-known aptitude test batteries.

GATB – GENERAL APTITUDE TEST BATTERY

The GATB is the most popular and widely used test of aptitude. It was first developed and used in the United
States Employment Services, to decide where an individual would be best suited to work. This Battery has
12 tests measuring 9 different aptitudes which are considered to be important in a wide range of occupations. 8
of these tests are paper-pencil tests and other 4 tests use apparatus. The tests are –

1. Name comparison
2. Computation
3. Three-dimensional space
4. Vocabulary
5. Tool matching
6. Arithmetic reasoning
7. Form matching
8. Mark making
9. Place
10. Turn
11. Assemble
12. Disassemble
It measures the following attributes:
• Intelligence (G)- It refers to the general learning ability of an individual, his/her scholastic aptitude and
his/her ability to grasp instructions. It is measured through the sum of the scores of Vocabulary, Arithmetic
reasoning, Three-dimensional space.
• Verbal Aptitude (V)- It is the ability to understand the meaning of verbal forms of presentation, by
understanding meanings of words, paragraphs, concepts and ideas put forth verbally. It is measured through
Vocabulary test.
• Numerical Aptitude (N)- It measures the individual’s ability to solve arithmetic problems with speed and
accuracy. Through Computation and Arithmetic reasoning this aptitude is measured.
• Spatial Aptitude (S)- It is the ability of an individual to visually think and understand the relationship
between space and objects moving in it. It helps to understand the two-dimensional representation of the three-
dimensional world. It is measured through the Three-dimensional space test.

39
• Form Perception (P)- It is the ability of an individual to identify and perceive significant details in objects
and graphs. It is computed by Form matching (the subject has to match identical drawings of tools) and Tool
matching test (identical geographical forms had to be matched).
• Clerical Perception (Q)- It is the ability of an individual to identify significant details in verbal or
numerical materials, differences in copy, table or lists. It is similar to proof-reading. It is computed by Name
comparison test.
• Motor Coordination (K)- It is the ability of an individual to move eyes, hands, fingers in coordination,
rapidly and accurately to make quick precise movements. The test measuring this component requires the
subject to make specific pencil marks in a series of squares. It is computed by Mark Making test.
• Finger Dexterity (F)- It is the ability of an individual to manipulate small objects quickly and accurately
using fingers. It is measured through Assemble and Disassemble Test where the testee is required to assemble
and disassemble reverts and washers.
• Manual Dexterity (M)- It is the ability of an individual to do more gross movements of the hand than finger
dexterity. Here the subject transfer and reverse pegs on the board and it is measured through Place and Turn
Test.
The total time required to administer GATB is 2.5 hours. The obtained raw scores are changed into standard
scores for various aptitudes which are matched with the norms of the different groups to understand the aptitude
of the persons. It is a good aptitude test for vocational guidance of youth and adults.

USEFULNESS OF APTITUDE TESTS:

• It speculates a learner’s readiness to learn and helps to assess the learning ability of an individual.
• It helps to compare a child’s performance with that of others in the same situation.
• It assesses differences in aptitude among individuals.
• It helps students to select subjects he/she could pursue.
• It helps employers to select appropriate personnel for various jobs. It can also be used for placing employees in
various positions.
• It can be used as a benchmark for admission of students in different professional courses like medicine,
engineering, etc.

ACHIEVEMENT
Achievement is all about individual’s past. Achievement is what a person has acquired in terms of
skill/knowledge or the level of expertise a person has reached in a task, after being trained.

According to Tuckman (1975) Achievement tests is also called Proficiency test in which, one measures the
extent to which the person has acquired or achieved certain information or proficiency as a function of
instruction or training. There are two types of achievement tests – Diagnostic test and Standard end of course
test.

USEFULNESS OF ACHIEVEMENT TESTS:

• It helps to identify the weakness and slackness of an individual or any training programme.
• It can also be used by the education boards to critically examine the content of the syllabi and the teaching-
methods.
• It helps to identify the problem of the learner.
• It also helps an individual to identify in which field he/she might do well.
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• It provides information to the test taker which subject or profession he/she may choose to excel in his/her life.
• It helps a teacher to observe how effective the teaching methods are that he/she is using.
• Achievement test scores also indicate how effective the school administration and supervisors are.

ACHIEVEMENT TEST APTITUDE TEST

1. It measures the level of expertise a person has 1. It measures an individual’s innate potential which
acquired in a task after training. enables him/her to perform any kind of activity.
2. Tests are designed to find out how much the 2. Tests are designed to help candidates choose from
students have learnt after training. amongst various careers by discovering their innate
talents and possibilities of interest.
3. It helps to find out the accomplishments of an 3. It helps to predict an individual’s performance.
individual in any area.

Both achievement and aptitude can be together called Ability.

INTEREST
Interest is commonly used expression in day-to-day life. Interest is a preference for a particular activity. It has a
great influence on human behaviour. A person’s ability to do a particular work better than another depends not
only on his intelligence but also upon his/her interest.

According to Bingham an interest is tendency to become absorbed in an experience and to continue it.

Interest is measured by tests that provide information about the interest pattern of individuals. it is essential to
judge an individual’s aptitude along with interest. One popular interest test is Strong – Campbell Interest
Inventory (SCII).

USEFULNESS OF ACHIEVEMENT TESTS:

• It indicates one’s likes and dislikes. Hence, proper assessment of interest will lead to right career choice.
• It plays an important role in academic success as well as success in other areas.

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 INTERRELATION BETWEEN CULTURE AND INTELLIGENCE (extra)
• The cultural environment provides a context for intelligence to develop.
• Vygotsky, a Russian psychologist, has argued that culture provides a social context in which people live, grow,
and understand the world around them.
• Culture is a collective system of customs, beliefs, attitudes and achievements in art and literature. A person’s
intelligence is likely to be tuned by these cultural parameters.
• Vygotsky also believed that cultures, like individuals, have a life of their own; they grow and change, and in the
process specify what will be the end-product of successful intellectual development.
• According to him, while elementary mental functions are universal, the manner in which higher mental
functions such as problem-solving and thinking operate are largely culture-produced.
• Technologically advanced societies adopt child-rearing practices that foster skills of generalization and
abstraction, speed, minimal moves, and mental manipulation among children. These societies promote a type of
behaviour which can be called Technological Intelligence.
• On the other hand, intelligence in the Indian tradition can be termed as Integral Intelligence, which gives
emphasis on connectivity with the social and world environment. Indian thinkers view intelligence from a
holistic perspective where equal attention is paid to cognitive and non-cognitive processes as well as their
integration.

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