Genes, Brains, and Human Potential The Science and Ideology of Intelligence

98 PRETEND INTELLIGENCE

say, to a population- wide gain in physiological function such as metabolic
effi ciency of 50  percent over two generations. And as Flynn noted, “IQ
gains have not been accompanied by an escalation of real world cogni-
tive skills... an evolution from widespread retardation to normalcy, or
from normalcy to widespread gift edness.”^32
In other words, intelligence test per for mance has increased, but intel-
ligence has not. Th is paradox may be resolved by quite a diff er ent view of
intelligence. Let us look at some possibilities.

LEARNED COGNITIVE STRUCTURES

Human cognitive functions are not ones that develop from the inside out,
as with other skills, like walking or visual acuity. Th is is a point I will elab-
orate on a great deal in chapter 9. Instead, they are socially evolved tools of
thought that, in individuals, are acquired from the outside in. Th is is ob-
vious with functions like language, but it is true for our cognitive functions,
too. In this perspective, what IQ tests actually assess is not some universal
scale of cognitive strength but the presence of skills and knowledge struc-
tures more likely to be acquired in some groups than in others.
Th is point applies to both verbal and nonverbal test items. Since the
Raven is widely thought of as a test of pure g, I will use it as an example.
Th e test involves deducing rules from symbols in two- dimensional arrays
on paper (see fi gure 3.1). Psychologists have always claimed that these are
entirely abstract— meaning that the prob lems are not dependent in any
way on previous experience, but only on inner cognitive strength. But it
is not diffi cult to show that the specifi c rules are more prevalent in some
subcultures than in others (e.g., middle- class compared with working-
class families). Th ey are more or less likely to be acquired by children
in those families in a way that has nothing to do with their mental
potential.
For example, tests like the Raven nearly all require the reading of ele-
ments in the matrix from top- left to bottom- right, just as in (Western)
text. But they also embed further rules that, far from being experience
free, mimic those in rec ord sheets, spreadsheets, timetables, or other
tables of rows and columns, with totals and subtotals. Th e rules involve

This content downloaded from 139.184.14.159 on Tue, 17 Oct 2017 13:52:12 UTC

http://www.ebook3000.com