Testing the indifferentiation hypothesis during childhood, adolescence and adulthood

The general (g) factor is the most general and relevant cognitive ability. This factor is considered to be one of the most important predictors of academic achievement and of many other socially relevant behavioral outcomes. In the last decades, many researchers have investigated the possible change...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Juan Espinosa, Manuel de; Cuevas Esteban, Lara; Escorial Martín, Sergio; García, Luis F.
Format: Article
Publication date:2006
Country:España
Institution:Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM)
Repository:Docta Complutense
Language:English
OAI Identifier:oai:docta.ucm.es:20.500.14352/132674
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/132674
Access Level:Open access
Keyword:Cognitive abilities structure
G factor
Indifferentiation hypothesis
WAIS
TEA battery
Aptitudes e inteligencia (Psicología)
Psicología evolutiva
Psicología diferencial
61 Psicología
Description
Summary:The general (g) factor is the most general and relevant cognitive ability. This factor is considered to be one of the most important predictors of academic achievement and of many other socially relevant behavioral outcomes. In the last decades, many researchers have investigated the possible changes in the relevance of the g factor from childhood to adulthood. The indifferentiation hypothesis states that the variance attributed to the g factor and the main cognitive abilities will not change over the life span. In the present study, the authors tested that hypothesis in childhood, adolescence, and adulthood by using 2 different cognitive batteries (Test of Educational Ability [TEA; S. A. TEA, 1999], Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scales [WAIS; D. Wechsler, 1955]), which they administered in 2 different countries-Spain (TEA) and the United States (WAIS). The ages of the participants (N = 2,384) ranged from 8 to 54 years. Results showed that the number of factors extracted and the relevance were the same for every age group in both batteries, as predicted by the indifferentiation hypothesis. The authors discuss implications of intelligence assessment.