CHAPTER – 1
VARIATIONS IN
PSYCHOLOGICAL
ATTRIBUTES
INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES
The Person Individual differences refer to
• skills & abilities distinctiveness and variations among
• personality people’s characteristics and behaviour
• perception patterns.
• attribution
• attitudes
• values
• ethics
WHAT IS
INTELLIGENCE?
• Intelligence refers to the ability to understand, learn,
and apply knowledge effectively. It involves problem-
solving, reasoning, and the capacity to adapt to new
situations.
• According to Alfred Binet intelligence, it is defined as
the ability to judge well, understand well, and reason
well.
• According to, Wechsler, Intelligence is understood in
terms of its functionality, i.e. its value for adaptation to
the environment. He defined it as the global and
aggregate capacity of an individual to think rationally, act
purposefully, and to deal effectively with his/her
environment.
THEORIES OF INTELLIGENCE
Psychologists have suggested various intelligence
theories, which can be categorized as
psychometric/structural or information-processing
approaches.
The Psychometric or Structural Approach-
It views intelligence as a collection of
abilities and measures an individual's
performance through a single ability index.
The Information Processing
Approach
It involves studying the cognitive functions
that underlie intelligent behavior, with a focus
on how intelligent individuals reason and
solve problems. It seeks to describe the
processes involved in such activities.
ALFRED BINET’S ONE/UNI FACTOR THEORY
• The single-factor theory, also known as the intelligence quotient (IQ) theory,
was developed by Alfred Binet.
• Binet proposed that intelligence could be measured as a single factor, which he
called general mental ability.
• This theory suggests that people who excel in one area of intelligence, such as
mathematics, will also tend to excel in other areas, such as verbal reasoning or
spatial reasoning.
SPEARMAN’S TWO
FACTOR
THEORY OF
Spearman’s two-factor theory of intelligence, also known as the g-factor theory,
INTELLIGENCE
was proposed by British psychologist Charles Spearman in the early 1900s.
Spearman's Two-Factor Theory suggests that intelligence is a combination of
both general and specific factors. The theory suggests that intelligence is
comprised of two factors: a general ability factor (g) and specific ability factors
(s).
The general ability factor (g) represents a person’s overall level of cognitive
ability, which is the underlying factor that influences performance on all mental
tasks.
On the other hand, specific ability factors (s) represent an individual’s unique
abilities in specific areas, such as verbal comprehension, numerical reasoning,
spatial ability, and so on.
THURSTONE GROUP FACTOR THEORY OF
INTELLIGENCE
• The Thurstone group factor theory of intelligence, also known as the multiple factor theory of intelligence, was proposed by Louis
Leon Thurstone in the 1930s.
• Thurstone believed that intelligence is not a single entity, but rather a combination of distinct primary mental abilities.
• He identified seven primary mental abilities that he believed were the foundation of intelligence, each of which contributed to an
individual’s overall cognitive ability in different ways.
GUILFORD’S STRUCTURE OF THE INTELLECT
According to him, Intelligence depends on:
Mental operations (process of thinking)
Content (what we think about)
Product (result of our thinking)
By Content he meant that different people seemed to pay more attention to and think more effectively about different kinds of
information.
CONTENT DIMENSION
• Visual—Information perceived through seeing.
• Auditory—Information perceived through hearing.
• Kinesthetic—Information perceived through one’s own physical actions.
• Symbolic—Information perceived as symbols or signs that have no meaning by themselves; e.g., Arabic numerals or the letters of
an alphabet.
• Semantic – Which is concerned with verbal meaning and ideas.
• Behavioral—Information perceived as acts of people.
OPERATIONS DIMENSION
SI includes six operations or general intellectual processes:
• Cognition—The ability to understand, comprehend, discover, and become aware of information.
• Memory recording—The ability to encode information.
• Memory retention—The ability to recall information.
• Divergent production—The ability to generate multiple solutions to a problem; creativity.
• Convergent production—The ability to deduce a single solution to a problem; rule-following or problem-solving.
• Evaluation—The ability to judge whether or not information is accurate, consistent, or valid.
PRODUCT DIMENSION
As the name suggests, this dimension contains results of applying particular operations to specific contents. The SI model includes
six products, in increasing complexity:
• Units—Single items of knowledge.
• Classes—Sets of units sharing common attributes.
• Relations—Units linked as opposites or in associations, sequences, or analogies.
• Systems—Multiple relations interrelated to comprise structures or networks.
• Transformations—Changes, perspectives, conversions, or mutations to knowledge.
• Implications—Predictions, inferences, consequences, or anticipations of knowledge.
STERNBERG TRIARCHIC THEORY OF INTELLIGENCE
HOWARD GARDNER’S THEORY ON
MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES
Multiple intelligences is a theory first posited by Harvard developmental
psychologist Howard Gardner in 1983.
The human ability to solve problems or to make something that is valued in
one or more cultures.
The theory of multiple intelligence is Howard Gardner’s theory that proposes:
• That people are not born with all of the intelligence they will ever have.
• It says that intelligence can be learned throughout life.
• Claims that everyone is intelligent in at least nine different ways and can
develop each aspect of intelligence to an average level of competency.
• Intelligence, as defined by Gardner, is the ability to solve problems or fashion
products that are valuable in one or more cultural settings.
This theory suggests human intelligence can be differentiated into the following
modalities: visual-spatial, verbal-linguistic, musical-rhythmic, logical-
mathematical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, naturalistic and bodily-kinesthetic.
PASS MODEL OF
INTELLIGENCE
The PASS (Planning, Attention-arousal, and
Simultaneous-successive ) THEORY of
intelligence has been developed by J.P Das, Jack
Naglieri, and Kirby (1994).
They proposed that three functional units of brain
determine the intellectual activity of an individual.
These three units are responsible for planning,
arousal/attention and simultaneous /Successive
processing .
These PASS processes are interactive in nature yet
each has its own distinctive functions.
PASS MODEL OF INTELLIGENCE
[Link]: Planning refers to the ability to formulate and execute a strategy to solve a problem or achieve a goal. It involves setting
goals, developing a plan of action, and monitoring progress towards the goal.
[Link]: Attention refers to the ability to focus and sustain attention on a task or stimuli in the environment. It involves the
selective filtering of irrelevant information and the allocation of mental resources to relevant stimuli.
[Link]: It refers to the ability to perceive & process multiple pieces of information at the same time. It involves
integrating information from different sources, recognizing patterns, and identifying relationships between different pieces of
information.
[Link]: Successive processing refers to the ability to process information in a sequential and ordered manner. It involves
analyzing information in a step-by-step manner, recognizing the order of events, and using logical reasoning to solve problems.
- INTELLIGENCE
RESEARCH STUDIES SUPPORTING NATURE
Correlations Research Findings
0.90 Identical twins reared together
Identical twins reared in different
0.72
environments
0.60 Fraternal twins reared together
0.50 Brothers and sisters reared together
0.25 Siblings reared apart
RESEARCH STUDIES SUPPORTING NURTURE
Factors Result
Intelligence level tends to move closer
Children grow in age
to that of their adoptive parents
Children from disadvantaged homes
Adopted into families with higher Intelligent score increases
economic status
Environmental Deprivation Lower Intelligence
Rich Nutrition, Good family
Intelligence increases
background and quality schooling
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.
VARIATIONS OF INTELLIGENCE
1. Intellectual Disability-
intellectual disability is having significantly below average intellectual functioning along
with deficits in adaptive behavior, which is evident during the developmental period.
This definition covers three main features:
• Below average intellectual functioning, resulting in slower comprehension compared to
peers of the same age.
• Difficulties with adaptability and effectively coping with the environment, which may
hinder the ability to hold a job or manage a family independently.
• Manifestation during the developmental period.
The severity of intellectual disability varies based on the level of IQ deficiency:
Mild: IQ 55-70
Moderate: IQ 35-55
Severe: IQ 20-35
Profound: IQ <20
Individuals with mild to moderate intellectual disability can often benefit from special
education and training, whereas those with severe to profound intellectual disability may
require more long-term support and assistance throughout their lives.
VARIATIONS OF INTELLIGENCE
[Link] Giftedness
Exceptional performance resulting from exceptional potential with an IQ score of
more than 130 can be identified through the concepts of talent and giftedness.
Giftedness refers to exceptional overall ability and superior performance in diverse
areas, while talent pertains to exceptional ability in a particular domain such as
social, spiritual or aesthetic.
Important characteristics of gifted children:
• Advanced logical thinking, questioning and problem solving.
• High speed in processing information.
• Superior generalization and discrimination ability
• Advance original and creative thinking
• High level intrinsic motivation, self esteem.
• Independent and non-conformist thinking
• Preference for solitary academic activities.
CHAPTER 2
SELF AND PERSONALITY
CONCEPT OF SELF
Personal identity refers to those attributes of a person that make her/him different from others.
Social identity refers to those aspects of a person that link her/him to a social or cultural group or are derived from it.
Kinds of Self
The personal self leads to an orientation in which one feels primarily concerned with oneself.
Social self emerges in relation with others and emphasises such aspects of life as cooperation, unity, affiliation, sacrifice,
support or sharing.
COGNITIVE AND BEHAVIOURAL ASPECTS OF SELF
Self-esteem
The value judgment of a person about herself/himself is called self-esteem. For Example, “I am good at homework”, or “I am the
one usually chosen for the games”
Self-efficacy
A person who believes that s/he has the ability or behaviours required by a particular situation demonstrates high self-efficacy.
People differ in the extent to which they believe they themselves control their life outcomes or the outcomes are controlled by luck
or fate or other situational factors, e.g. passing an examination.
Self-regulation refers to our ability to organise and monitor our own behaviour.
Learning to delay or defer the gratification of needs is called self-control.
MAJOR APPROACHES TO THE STUDY OF
PERSONALITY
Type Approach Interactional
attempts to Trait approach focuses approach holds
comprehend human on the specific that situational
personality by psychological characteristics
examining certain attributes along which
individuals tend to play an important
broad patterns in the
observed behavioural differ in consistent and role in
characteristics of stable ways. determining our
individuals. behaviour.
SHELDON’S PERSONALITY
The endomorphs are fat, soft and
round. By temperament they are
relaxed and sociable.
The mesomorphs have strong
musculature, are rectangular with
a strong body build.
They are energetic and
courageous.
The ectomorphs are thin, long and
fragile in body build. They are
brainy, artistic and introvert.
Jung’s Typology
Jung has proposed another important
typology by grouping people into
introverts and extraverts.
Introverts are people who prefer to be
alone, tend to avoid others, withdraw
themselves in the face of emotional
conflicts, and are shy.
Extraverts, on the other hand, are
sociable, outgoing, drawn to occupations
that allow dealing directly with people,
and react to stress by trying to lose
themselves among people and social
activity.
Friedman and Rosenman have classified
individuals into Type-A and Type-B personalities.
Type-A personality seem to possess high
motivation, lack patience, feel short of time, be in a
great hurry, and feel like being always burdened
with work.
Type-B personality, which can be understood as
the absence of Type-A traits.
Type-C personality, which is prone to cancer.
Individuals characterised by this personality are
cooperative, unassertive and patient.
Type-D personality has been suggested, which is
characterised by proneness to depression.
Allport’s Trait Theory
Cardinal traits are highly generalised dispositions.
They indicate the goal around which a person’s
entire life seems to revolve. Mahatma Gandhi’s non-
violence and Hitler’s Nazism are examples of
cardinal traits.
Less pervasive in effect, but still quite generalised
dispositions, are called central traits. These traits
(e.g., warm, sincere, diligent, etc.)
The least generalised characteristics of a person are
called secondary traits. Traits such as ‘likes
mangoes’ or ‘prefers ethnic clothes’ are examples of
secondary traits.
Openness to experience : Those who are score high on this factor are imaginative, curious,
open to new ideas, and interested in cultural pursuits. In contrast, those who score low are
rigid.
Extraversion : Who are socially active, assertive, outgoing, talkative, and fun loving.
On its opposite are people who are shy.
Agreeableness : People who are helpful, co-operative, friendly, caring, and nurturing. On the
opposite are people who are hostile and self-centred.
Neuroticism : People who score high on this factor are emotionally unstable,
anxious, worried, fearful, distressed, irritable and hypertensive. On the opposite
side are people who are well adjusted
Conscientiousness : Those who score high on this factor are achievement-oriented,
dependable, responsible, prudent, hardworking and self-controlled. On the
opposite are people who are impulsive.
Stages of Personality Development
Stages Feature
Oral Stage The infant achieves oral gratification through feeding, thumb sucking,
biting and babbling
Anal Stage The child learns to control the bodily functions of urination and
defecation.
Stages of Personality Development
Stages Feature
Phallic Stage This stage focuses on the genitals. At around ages four and five
children begin to realise the differences between males and
females. Oedipus Complex and Electra Complex are the features
of this stage
Latency This stage lasts from about seven years until puberty. During this
period, the child continues to grow physically, but sexual urges are
relatively inactive.
Genital the person attains maturity in psychosexual development. The
sexuality, fears and repressed feelings of earlier stages are once
again exhibited.
ASSESSMENT OF PERSONALITY
The most commonly used techniques are
• Psychometric Tests,
• Self-Report Measures, Projective Techniques, and
• Behavioural Analysis.
Self-report Measures
The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) - It
(Hathaway and McKinley)
MMPI 2 Consists of 567 statements.
Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ))
introverted-extraverted
Emotionally stable-emotionally unstable.
Psychoticism.
Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire (16 PF) - Catell
Projective Techniques
Projective techniques were developed to assess unconscious motives and
feelings. These techniques are based on the assumption that a less structured
or unstructured stimulus or situation will allow the individual to project her/his
feelings, desires and needs on to that situation
The Rorschach Inkblot Test
This test was developed by Hermann
Rorschach. The test consists of 10 inkblots.
Five of them are in black and white, two with
some red ink, and the remaining three in some
pastel colours.
The cards are administered individually in two
phases. In the first phase, called performance
proper, the subjects are shown the cards and
are asked to tell what they see in each of them.
In the second phase, called inquiry, a detailed
report of the response is prepared by asking the
subject to tell where, how, and on what basis
was a particular response made.
The Thematic Apperception Test (TAT)
• This test was developed by Morgan and Murray. It is
a little more structured than the Inkblot test. The test
consists of 30 black and white picture cards and one
blank card. Each picture card depicts one or more
people in a variety of situations.
• Each picture is printed on a card. Some cards are
used with adult males or females. Others are used
with boys or girls.
• The cards are presented one at a time. The subject
is asked to tell a story describing the situation
presented in the picture: What led up to the situation,
what is happening at the moment, what will happen
in the future, and what the characters are feeling and
thinking?
Sentence Completion Test
• This test makes use of a number of incomplete sentences. The
starting part of the sentence is first presented and the subject has to
provide an ending to the sentence.
• It is held that the type of endings used by the subjects reflect their
attitudes, motivation and conflicts.
• The test provides subjects with several opportunities to reveal their
underlying unconscious motivations.
THANK
YOU
