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Intelligence Theories in Psychology – Part 1: Alfred Binet

Alfred Binet (1857-1911) obtained a degree in law before self-schooling
himself in the science of psychology. His reading exposed him to the
theories of John Stuart Mill who contended intelligence could be explained
by using laws of association. Binet felt the overall theory of intelligence
was lacking, although he continued to draw on Mill's insight to influence
his work.

Binet also found that craniometry was not a consistent (internally reliable)
method of predicting intelligence (in this case school performance).
Especially, the disadvantage of the non-standardised procedure was
highlighted by the various measurements across researchers for each
child.

His two daughters provided Binet with observation opportunities to
develop his definition of intelligence which included attention span and
suggestibility. It has been suggested that Binet's work may have
influenced the practices of Jean Piaget, who studied with Theodore
Simone in 1920, a collaborator of Binet's.

The French government in 1904 contracted a child psychology group to
establish a commission into the education of children diagnosed as
retarded. The commission was expected to develop an instrument for
differentiating students in need of an alternative form of education. Binet
was a member of the group and introduced his idea for a mental scale.

With postgrad student Simon, Binet developed the Binet-Simon Scale.
The scale was made up of a range of tasks identified as representative of
the average child's abilities, based on age. Tasks were selected from the
years of data collection of children in natural settings. The mental scale
was tested with a sample of fifty schoolchildren across five age groups
who had been confirmed as "average" by their teachers.

This was an initial attempt to compare "normal childhood abilities" with
those of all children within the education system.

The Binet-Simon Scale had thirty tasks that gradually increased in
difficulty. The first task was created so that even the most severely
retarded would be able to complete it. A child's score would be their
mental age. Hence, a 5 year old with a score equivalent to a 6 year old
would have a mental age of 6.0.

"This faculty is judgment, otherwise called good sense, practical sense,
initiative, the faculty of adapting one's self to circumstances. A person
may be a moron or an imbecile if he is lacking in judgment; but with good
judgment he can never be either. Indeed the rest of the intellectual
faculties seem of little importance in comparison with judgment"

                                                                      - (Binet & Simon, 1916)

The researchers noted the limitations of their mental scale. However, they
also emphasised that the obvious complexity of intelligence required that
quantitative measures be developed to measure it accurately. Binet
acknowledged that intelligence was not a fixed entity, nor did its variable
rates of development across children indicated that genetics was wholly
responsible for its growth. The physical and social environments were
seen as factors which could directly effect the development of intelligence.

Overall, Binet did not support the generalisability of intelligence testing,
given the high variability among children.

He believed the Binet-Simon Scale could be used to identify children with
special needs; however it served no purpose to be used otherwise. Binet
advocated for learning support for children with low scores so that they
would not be stigmatized. Never did Binet refer to the scale as an
"intelligence test".

Binet did not believe the concept of intelligence was entirely measurable
(could never be truly objectified); and his scale was inadequate to
measure intelligence.

Read Binet's (1905) classic, New Methods for the Diagnosis of the
Intellectual Level of Subnormals, here (http://psychclassics.yorku.
ca/Binet/binet1.htm).

Char's (First) Model of Intelligence

This is my attempt to define intelligence. Please note it is my first, and I do
try to critique its weaknesses. With ongoing study, reflection and debate it
is anticipated that I will either create my own model, or adopt that of
someone else who most meets my criteria of what intelligence is.

Across time, the ability to learn and apply new information seems to be a
constant factor in the definition of intelligence. How a person navigates
the world and their level of resiliency during adversity seems to be a key
determinant of intelligence. The ability to cope may be the defining
element of intelligence.

(unable to load schematic at this time)

Figure 1. A person's response to stress indicates level of intelligence
(coping). Affect, cognitions and behaviours are influenced by stress (e.g.,
happiness, disappointment). System responses to stress include
resiliency, sense of identity and general functionality. A person who
responds positively is said to have good coping skills and can be
considered of high intelligence, whilst those who do not cope can be
considered of low intelligence.

Unfortunately, this model implies that a person who is unable to cope with
their life situation is of low intelligence; which is not what I believe, so
again the definition of intelligence needs to be attended to.

Not coping is not equated with "not smart" in my definition of intelligence (i.
e., coping). Rather not coping (low intelligence) is an attempt to define the
inability to function fully at a point in time. It is acknowledged that low
functioning will also be contributed to by external factors (e.g., family
dynamics, socio-cultural, physical setting).

Read more about The Concept of Intelligence at Psychology Tutor

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