Revision Notes (Part - 1) - Variations in Psychological Attributes - Notes | Study Psychology Class 12 - Humanities/Arts

•Individual differences refer to distinctiveness and variations among people’s characteristics and behaviour patterns.
• Approaches explaining individual differences in psychological functioning.
 

1. Trait Approach: Personal traits cause change in behaviours. [INTERNAL FACTORS]

2. Situationism is a view which states that situations and circumstances in which one is
placed to influence one’s behaviour. [EXTERNAL FACTORS]\

3. The situationist perspective views human behaviour relatively more as a result of influence of external (situational) factors than personality traits.

• Assessment:

1.  Predict future behaviour intervention to affect a change in behaviour.
2. First step in understanding a psychological attribute.

• Formal Assessment: Objective, standardised, organised’psychologists are trained in making formal assessment.

• Inforinal Assessment: It varies from case to case/one assessor to another—open to subjective interpretation.

• Attributes:

1. Attributes chosen for assessment depend upon the purpose, e.g, improvement of a weak student intellectual strengths and weaknesses are measured.
2. An attribute will be said to exist in a person only if it can be measured by using scientific procedures.

• Some Domains of Psychological Attributes

• Assessment Methods

1. Wechsler:

• Definition: The global and aggregate capacity of an individual to think rationally, act purposefully, and to deal effectively with his/her environment.
• Understood intelligence in terms of its functionality, i.e., its value for adaption to the environment.
• Intelligence test most widely used.

2. Gardner and Sternberg:

• An intelligent individual not only adapts to the environment but also actively modifies or shapes it.
• Approaches to Study Intelligence

A. Psychometric Approach:
1. Uni/One-Factor Theory (Alfred Binet):

• Definition: The ability to judge well, understand well, and reason well.
• First psychologist who formalised the concept of intelligence in terms of mental operations.
• Differentiating more intelligent from less intelligent individuals.
• Conceptualised intelligence as consisting of one similar set of abilities which can be used for solving any or every problem in an individual’s environment.

2. Two-Factor Theory (Charles Spearman) [1927]:

• Employed a statistical method called factor analysis.
• Intelligence consists of a general factor (G-factor) and specific factors (S-factor).

(i) G-Factor: It includes mental operations which are primary and common to all performances.
(ii) S-Factor: It includes specific abilities which allow individuals to excel in their respective domains
3. Theory of Primary Mental Abilities (Louis Thurstone):
(i) Verbal Comprehension (grasping meaning of words, concepts, and ideas).
(ii) Numerical Abilities (speed and accuracy in numerical and computational skills).
(iii) Spatial Relations (visualizing patterns and forms).
(iv) Perceptual Speed To speed in perceiving details).
(v) Word Fluency (using words fluently and flexibly).
(vi) Memory (accuracy in recalling information).
(vii) Inductive Reasoning (deriving general rules from presented facts).
4. Hierarchical Model of Intelligence (Arthur Jensen):
Abilities operates at two levels:
Level I – Associative learning. [output is equal to input, rote memory]
Level II – Cognitive competence. [output is more than input]
5. Structure of Intellect Model (J.P. Guilford) [1988]:

• Classifies intellectual traits among three dimensions—operations, contents and products

(i) Operation: what the respondent does, e.g., cognition, memory retention.
(ii) Contents: the nature of materials or information on which intellectual

• operations are performed, e.g., visual, auditory.

(iii) Products: the form in which information is processed by the respondent, e.g., relations, systems, transformations.

• Classification includes 6x5x6 categories—the model has 180 cells.
• Each cell is expected to have at least one (can have more than one) factor or ability and is described in terms of all three dimensions.

B. Information-Processing Approach:
1. Theory of Multiple Intelligences (Howard Gardner):

• Intelligence is not a single entity; distinct types of intelligences exist independent of each other.
• Different types of intelligences interact and work together to find a solution to a problem.
• Studied persons who had shown exceptional abilities in their respective areas and described eight types of intelligence.

(i) Linguistic: The capacity to use language fluently and flexibly to express one’s thinking and understand other. Persons high on this ‘word-smart’, eigi, poets and writers.

(ii) Logical-Mathematical: Skills in problem solving, thinking logically and critically and abstract reasoning , eigi, scientists.

(iii) Spatial: The abilities involved in forming, using and transforming mental images (visual images and patterns), eigi, sculptors, painters, architects, interior decorators.

(iv) Musical: The capacity to produce, create and manipulate musical rhythms and patterns.

(v) Bodily-Kinaesthetic: The use of the whole body or portions of it creatively and
flexibly for display, construction of products and problem solving, eigi, athletes, dancers, actors. .

(vi) Interpersonal: Skill of an individual to understand the needs, motives feelings and behaviours of other people for better understanding and relationship. High among psychologists counsellors politicians.

(vii) INTRA PERSONAL: Refers to the awareness of one’s own feelings, motives, desires, knowledge of one’s internal strengths and limitations and using that knowledge to effectively relate to others, eigi, philosophers.

(viii) Naturalistic: Complete awareness of our relationship with the natural world and sensitivity to the features of the natural world, eigi, botanists, zoologists.

2. Triarchic Theory of Intelligence (Robert Sternberg) [1985]:

• Definition: The ability to adapt, to shape and select environment to accomplish one’s goals and those of one’s society and culture.
• Three Basic Types of Intelligence:

(i) Componential Intelligence/Analytical Intelligence: The analysis of informa¬tion to solve problems
Three components:

(a) Knowledge Acquisition—responsible for learning and acquisition of the ways of doing things.

(b) Meta or Higher Order Component—planning concerning what to do and how to do it.

(c) Performance Component—actually doing things .

(ii) Experiential/Creative Intelligence: Using past experiences creatively to solve novel problems.

— Ability to integrate different experiences in an original way to make new discoveries and inventions.

— Quickly find out what information is crucial in a given situation.

(iii) Contextual/Practical Intelligence: The ability to deal with environmental demands encountered on a daily basis—

— may be called ‘street smartness’ or ‘business sense’
— easily adapt to their present environment/select a more favourable environment, modify the environment to fit their needs.

3. Planning, Attention-arousal and Simultaneous-Successive (PASS) Model of Intelligence (J.P. Das, Jack Nagliery, Kirby) [1994]

•  Intellectual activity involves the interdependent functioning of three neurological systems, called the functional units of brain
• These units are responsible for—

(i) Arousal/Attention:

— Arousal and attention enable a person to process information.
— An optimal level of arousal focuses our attention to the relevant aspects of a problem.
— Too much or too little arousal would interfere with attention and attend to stimuli.

(ii) Simultaneous and Successive Processing:

— Simultaneous: Perceive the relations among various concepts and integrate – them into a meaningful pattern for comprehension, e.g., RSPM.
— Successive: Remember all the information serially so that the recall of one leads to the recall of another, e.g., learning of digits, letters. .

(iii) Planning:

— Allows us to think of the possible courses of action, implement them to reach a target, and evaluate their effectiveness.
— If a plan does not work, it is modified to suit the requirements of the task or situation.

• These PASS processes operate on a knowledge base developed either formally (by reading, writing, and experimenting) or informally from the environment.
• These processes are interactive and dynamic in nature, yet each has its own distinctive function.

Cognitive Assessment System (CAS) (Das and Nagliery):

• Battery of tests meant for individuals between 5-18 years of age.
• Consists of verbal as well as non-verbal tasks that measure basic cognitive functions presumed to be independent of schooling.
• Results of assessment can be used to remedy cognitive deficits of children with learning problems.

Individual Differences in Intelligence:

The evidence for hereditary influences on intelligence comes mainly from studies on twins and adopted children.

 

CORRELATION OF INTELLIGENCE

• Separated early in childhood-—show considerable similarity in their intellectual, personality and behavioural characteristics.
• Adopted Children—children’s intelligence is more similar to their biological rather than adoptive parents.
• Role of Environment—as children grow in age, their intelligence level tends to move closer to that of their adoptive parents.
• Disadvantaged Children—adopted into families with higher socio-economic status exhibit a large increase in their intelligence scores.

1. Environmental deprivation lowers intelligence while rich nutrition, good family background, and quality schooling increases intelligence.
2. There is a general consensus among psychologists that intelligence is a product of complex interaction of heredity (nature) and environment (nurture).
3. Heredity sets a range within which an individual’s development is actually shaped by the support and opportunities of the environment.

• Assessment of Intelligence

1905: Alfred Binet and Theodore Simon made the first successful attempt to formally measure intelligence.
1908: Gave the concepts of Mental Age (MA) is the measure of a person’s intellectual development relative to people of her/his age-group.
Chronological Age (CA) is the biological age from birth.
Retardation was being two mental age years below the chronological age.
1912: William Stern, a German psychologist, devised the concept of Intelligence Quotient (IQ). IQ refers to ratio between MA and CA. Formula—mental age divided by chronological age, and multiplied by 100 (to avoid the decimal point).

• Average IQ in the population is 100, irrespective of age.
• Frequency distribution for the IQ scores tends to approximate a bell-shaped curve, called the normal curve—symmetrical around the central value, called the mean.

Variations In Intelligence
1. Intelligence Deficiency (Mentally Retarded/Challenged):

The American Association on Mental Deficiency (AAMD) views mental retardation as significantly sub-average general intellectual functioning existing concurrently with deficits in adaptive behaviour and manifested during the developmental period.
In order to be judged as mentally retarded, a person must show:

(i) Significantly sub average intellectual functioning, e.g., IQ below 70.
(ii) Deficits in adaptive behaviour or the capacity to be independent and deal effectively with one’s environment.

Deficits must be observed during the developmental period, i.e., between 0-18 years.

Mild retardation—development is typically slower than that of their peers but they can function quite independently, hold jobs and families. Level of retardation increases—lag behind their peers in language and motor skills, need to be trained in self-care skills and simple social and communication skills.
 

2. Intellectual Giftedness:
Lewis Term an (1925): Study to show how intelligence was related to occupational success and life adjustment. These individual show higher performance because of their outstanding potentialities.
Giftedness is exceptional general ability shown in superior performance in a wide variety of areas.

• Teacher’s perspective: depends on a combination of high ability, high creativity and high commitment.
• Early signs of intellectual superiority: during infancy show larger attention span, good memory, sensitivity to environmental changes, early appearance of language skills.
• Other characteristics are advanced logical thinking and problem solving, high speed in processing information, high-level creative thinking, high self-esteem, independence.
• Incorrect to equate with brilliant academic performance: each gifted student possesses different strengths, personalities and characteristics, e.g., athletes.

Talent refers to remarkable ability in a specific field, e.g., social, and are often called prodigies.
Types of Intelligence Tests,
Individual or Group Test

Culture-Fair or Culture-Biased Tests

Verbal, Non-verbal or performance Tests
     
CULTURE AND INTELLIGENCE
A major characteristic of intelligence is that it helps individuals to adapt to their environment. The cultural environment provides a context for intelligence to develop. ‘
Culture is a collective system of customs, beliefs, attitudes and achievements in art and literature.
Sternberg:

• Notion of contextual or practical intelligence implies that intelligence is a product of culture.

Vygotsky (Russian psychologist):

• Culture provides a social context in which people live, grow and understand the world around them.
• Elementary mental functions (e.g., walking, crying) are Universal; the manner in which higher mental functions such as problem-solving and thinking operate are largely culture produced.

• Equal attention given to cognitive and non-cognitive processes and their integration:

(i) Cognitive capacity (sensitivity to context, understanding, discrimination, problem-solving and effective communication).
(ii) Social competence (respect for social order, commitment to elders, the young and the needy, concern about others and recognising others perspectives).
(iii) Emotional competence (self-regulation and self-monitoring of emotions, honesty, politeness, good conduct and self-evaluation).
(iv) Entrepreneurial competence (commitment, persistence, patience, hard work, vigilance and goal-directed behaviour).
 

• 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.
(i) Emotional Quotient (EQ) is used to express emotional intelligence in the same way as IQ is used to express intelligence.
(ii) Salovey and Mayer: The ability to monitor one’s own and other’s emotions, to discriminate among them and to use the information to guide one’s thinking and actions.