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Journal ArticleDOI

Why g matters: The complexity of everyday life

01 Jan 1997-Intelligence (JAI)-Vol. 24, Iss: 1, pp 79-132
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors provide evidence that intelligence has pervasive utility in work settings because it is essentially the ability to deal with cognitive complexity, in particular, with complex information processing, and the more complex a work task, the greater the advantages that higher g confers in performing it well.
About: This article is published in Intelligence.The article was published on 1997-01-01 and is currently open access. It has received 1300 citations till now. The article focuses on the topics: Everyday life & Cognitive complexity.

Summary (1 min read)

Why g Matters: The Complexity of Everyday Life

  • This article provides evidence that g has pervasive utility in work settings because it is essentially the ability to deal with cognitive complexity, in particular, with complex information processing.
  • Few claims in the social sciences are backed by such massive evidence but remain so hotly contested in public discourse.
  • Besides demonstrating that g is important in practical affairs, I seek to demonstrate why intelligence has such surprisingly pervasive importance in the lives of individuals.
  • I then use both the employment and literacy data to sketch a portrait of life’s challenges and opportunities at different levels of intelligence.

WHAT DOES “IMPORTANT” MEAN?

  • The nature of the job and its context seem to determine whether g has any direct effect on task proficiency, net of job knowlege.
  • As is well known in psychometrics (see also Gordon, 1997), the fact that an individual passes or fails any single test item says little about that person’s general intelligence level.

INFLUENCE OF INTELLIGENCE ON OVERALL LIFE OUTCOMES

  • The effects of intelligence-like other psychological traits-are probabilistic, not deterministic.
  • White adults in this range marry, work, and have children (Hermstein & Murray, 1994), but, as Table 10 shows, they are nonetheless at great risk of living in poverty (30%), bearing children out of wedlock (32%), and becoming chronic welfare dependents (31%).
  • At this IQ level, fewer than half the high school graduates and none of the dropouts meet the military’s minimum AFQT enlistment standards.
  • Most occupations are within reach cognitively, because these individuals learn complex material fairly easily and independently.
  • Such as divorce, illness, and occasional unemployment, they rarely become trapped in poverty or social pathology.

THE FUTURE

  • Complexity enriches social and cultural life, but it also risks leaving some individuals behind.
  • Society has become more complex-and g loaded-as the authors have entered the information age and postindustrial economy.
  • Accordingly, organizations are “flatter” (have fewer hierarchical levels), and increasing numbers of jobs require high-level cognitive and interpersonal skills (Camevale, 1991; Cascio, 1995; Hunt, 1995; Secretary’s Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills, 1991).
  • There is evidence that increasing proportions of individuals with below-average IQs are having trouble adapting to their increasingly complex modern life (Granat & Granat, 1978) and that social inequality along IQ lines is increasing (Herrnstein & Murray, 1994).
  • As the military experience also illustrates, however, what is good pedagogy for the low-aptitude learner may be inappropriate for the high-aptitude person.

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Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a business microworld simulation was used to investigate the incremental value of 20 cognitive and non-cognitive predictors of learning and performance trajectories, using a combined experimental-differential paradigm and mixed-level modelling, it was predicted that facilitating personality traits (e.g., openness and extraversion), growth/motivational mindsets (i.e., learning goals, need for cognition, and beliefs of malleability), and tentatively, emotion-regulation would moderate the impact of microwave complexity and experience on performance.

6 citations


Cites background from "Why g matters: The complexity of ev..."

  • ...Cognitive abilities, such as working-memory and general reasoning capacity, have been demonstrated time and time again as consistent and dominant predictors of work and formal educational outcomes (Gottfredson, 1997; Sternberg & Grigorenko, 2002)....

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  • ...Cognitive abilities, such as working-memory and general reasoning capacity, have been demonstrated time and time again as consistent and dominant predictors of work and formal educational outcomes (Gottfredson, 1997; Sternberg & Grigorenko, 2002)....

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01 Jan 2018
TL;DR: In this paper, the uniqueness of the Nonprofit Organizational Context and its uniqueness as a Particular Type of NPO are discussed. But the focus of the study is on the role of development officers in higher education.
Abstract: ........................................................................................................................ ix CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION .............................................................................. 1 Background of the Problem ......................................................................................... 1 The Uniqueness of the Nonprofit Organizational Context ........................................ 2 Foundations as a Particular Type of NPO ................................................................ 3 Foundations in Higher Education ............................................................................. 5 Development Officers in Higher Education ............................................................. 6 Problem Statement ...................................................................................................... 7 Purpose of the Study ................................................................................................... 9 Theoretical Framework ............................................................................................... 9 Motivation Theory ................................................................................................. 10 Social Cognitive Theory. ................................................................................... 10 Grit ........................................................................................................................ 11 Goal-setting Theory ............................................................................................... 13 Self-Talk. .......................................................................................................... 13 Research Questions ................................................................................................... 14

5 citations


Cites background from "Why g matters: The complexity of ev..."

  • ...1 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION Background of the Problem Despite extensive research seeking to illuminate the traits, beliefs, and motivations that drive individuals to pursue achievement and success (Ericson & Charness, 1994; Gottfredson, 1997; Hartigan & Wigdor, 1989; Paunonen & Jackson, 2000), it has remained unclear why, given similar levels of intelligence and training, some people outperform others and achieve more than their peers (Terman & Ogden, 1947)....

    [...]

  • ...…seeking to illuminate the traits, beliefs, and motivations that drive individuals to pursue achievement and success (Ericson & Charness, 1994; Gottfredson, 1997; Hartigan & Wigdor, 1989; Paunonen & Jackson, 2000), it has remained unclear why, given similar levels of intelligence and…...

    [...]

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The cumulative body of validity research, consisting of thousands of studies and scores of meta-analyses, has conclusively demonstrated that a strong positive relationship exists between job performance and general mental ability.
Abstract: Issue: The research published outside of medical education journals provides an important source of validity evidence for using cognitive ability testing in medical school admissions. Evidence: The cumulative body of validity research, consisting of thousands of studies and scores of meta-analyses, has conclusively demonstrated that a strong positive relationship exists between job performance and general mental ability. Implications: Recommendations for reducing the emphasis on or eliminating the role of general mental ability in the selection process for medical schools are not based on a consideration of the wider research evidence. Admission interventions that substantially reduce the level of academic aptitude are also likely to result in reduced professional performance.

5 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Data are presented from Georgia, which has a high female participation rate in chess, which suggest that differing gender motivation levels and participation rates impact relatively little on chess performance differences at the extreme.
Abstract: Bilalic and McLeod’s arguments fall short on several grounds. There are excellent logical reasons to expect strong ability/chess expertise links and specific research evidence to date is sparse, with mixed findings. Data are presented from Georgia, which has a high female participation rate in chess, which suggest that differing gender motivation levels and participation rates impact relatively little on chess performance differences at the extreme.

5 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the long-term effects of various selection factors once the suitable candidates have been selected have been studied and the selection research has typically focused on how to identify suitable candidates.
Abstract: Selection research has typically focused on how to identify suitable candidates, while less is known regarding the long-term effects of various selection factors once the suitable candidates have s ...

5 citations


Cites background from "Why g matters: The complexity of ev..."

  • ...Extensive research supports the importance of selection factors, including general intelligence and personality, for various outcomes (cf. Gonzales-Mulé et al. 2014; Gottfredson 1997; Schmidt & Hunter 1998)....

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  • ...While general intelligence is typically argued to constitute a positive personal resource (cf. Gottfredson 1997), these unexpected findings not only suggest the opposite but also raise questions regarding how traditional police work fits individuals with a higher intellectual capacity and how…...

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  • ...For instance, higher general intelligence has been associated with successfully dealing with demands of everyday life (Gottfredson 1997)....

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References
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The ten-year edition of the 10th anniversary edition as mentioned in this paper is devoted to the theory of multiple intelligences and its application in the socialization of human intelligence through Symbols Implications And Applications.
Abstract: * Introduction to the Tenth Anniversary Edition Background * The Idea of Multiple Intelligences * Intelligence: Earlier Views * Biological Foundations of Intelligence * What Is an Intelligence? The Theory * Linguistic Intelligence * Musical Intelligence * Logical-Mathematical Intelligence * Spatial Intelligence * Bodily-Kinesthetic Intelligence * The Personal Intelligences * A Critique of the Theory of Multiple Intelligences * The Socialization of Human Intelligences through Symbols Implications And Applications * The Education of Intelligences * The Application of Intelligences

11,512 citations

Book
01 Jan 1983
TL;DR: The Tenth Anniversary Edition of Intelligence explains the development of intelligence in the 21st Century through the applications of language, linguistics, mathematics, and more.
Abstract: * Introduction to the Tenth Anniversary Edition Background * The Idea of Multiple Intelligences * Intelligence: Earlier Views * Biological Foundations of Intelligence * What Is an Intelligence? The Theory * Linguistic Intelligence * Musical Intelligence * Logical-Mathematical Intelligence * Spatial Intelligence * Bodily-Kinesthetic Intelligence * The Personal Intelligences * A Critique of the Theory of Multiple Intelligences * The Socialization of Human Intelligences through Symbols Implications And Applications * The Education of Intelligences * The Application of Intelligences

9,611 citations

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Abstract: This study investigated the relation of the “Big Five” personality dimensions (Extraversion, Emotional Stability, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, and Openness to Experience) to three job performance criteria (job proficiency, training proficiency, and personnel data) for five occupational groups (professionals, police, managers, sales, and skilled/semi-skilled). Results indicated that one dimension of personality, Conscientiousness, showed consistent relations with all job performance criteria for all occupational groups. For the remaining personality dimensions, the estimated true score correlations varied by occupational group and criterion type. Extraversion was a valid predictor for two occupations involving social interaction, managers and sales (across criterion types). Also, both Openness to Experience and Extraversion were valid predictors of the training proficiency criterion (across occupations). Other personality dimensions were also found to be valid predictors for some occupations and some criterion types, but the magnitude of the estimated true score correlations was small (ρ < .10). Overall, the results illustrate the benefits of using the 5-factor model of personality to accumulate and communicate empirical findings. The findings have numerous implications for research and practice in personnel psychology, especially in the subfields of personnel selection, training and development, and performance appraisal.

8,018 citations

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TL;DR: An up-to-date handbook on conceptual and methodological issues relevant to the study of industrial and organizational behavior is presented in this paper, which covers substantive issues at both the individual and organizational level in both theoretical and practical terms.
Abstract: An up-to-date handbook on conceptual and methodological issues relevant to the study of industrial and organizational behavior. Chapters contributed by leading experts from the academic and business communities cover substantive issues at both the individual and organizational level, in both theoretical and practical terms.

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