Linda S. Gottfredson

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Creativity on the Brain(and its psychometrics)

• Linda S. Gottfredson
• University of Delaware
• Newark, DE

Discussion of Rex E. Jungs presentation,
Neuroimaging of Creativity and Intelligence
New Voices in Creativity and Intelligence
Conference University of Kansas Lawrence, KS,
November 2, 2009
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Exciting interdisciplinary research

• Big advances, quickly
• More imaging methods
• Lower cost
• Larger samples
• More collaboration
• More theory testing
• More psychometric traits
• Etc.

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Psychometric (Interpretive) Challenges

• Construct validity
• IQ score
• g theoretical construct
• Restriction in range
• Reliability of measurement
• Sampling error

Treating scores as constructs badly muddled
intelligence debates

3 statistical artifacts misled personnel
selection psychology for many decades
Your assessment of your fields needs? Questions
of experts here today?
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• Constructs vs. Measurements

Construct (empirical phenomenon) Measurement (score)
Intelligence ggeneral proficiency at learning, reasoning (catching on) IQ score
Creativity ? ?
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Hierarchical model of cognitive abilitiesThe
empirical relatedness of differences across
individuals
(factor analyses of scores)
Where is intelligence? Its just a label that
can be applied to different layers of traits
inor outsidethe hierarchical model
g

• MOST GENERAL
• Domain general
• More heritable
• Psychometrically unitary
• Physiologically distributed

V
Q
S
M
Others
NARROW
Specific variance, unrelated to g
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Hierarchical model of cognitive abilitiesThe
empirical relatedness of differences across
individuals
(factor analyses of scores)
g

• MOST GENERAL
• Domain general
• More heritable
• Psychometrically unitary
• Physiologically distributed

IQ
Family of Constructs
V
Q
S
M
Others
NARROW
Specific variance, unrelated to g
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A closer look at constructs vs. measures
Constructs
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An often misunderstood point
Constructs
g is core ingredient of all more specific
abilities
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Scores ? Constructs
Constructs
Test Scores
FSIQ
WMI
PSI
PRI
VCI
si
bd
ds
cd
vo
ss
pc
ln
mr
co
g is core ingredient of all more specific
abilities
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Note IQ is just sum of scores, not of constructs
Constructs
Test Scores
FSIQ
WMI
PSI
PRI
VCI
si
bd
ds
cd
vo
ss
pc
ln
mr
co
g is core ingredient of all more specific
abilities
IQ is sum of subtest scores
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IQ (score) is a good estimate of g (construct)
Constructs
Test Scores
FSIQ
WMI
PSI
PRI
VCI
si
bd
ds
cd
vo
ss
pc
ln
mr
co
g is core ingredient of all more specific
abilities
IQ is sum of subtest scores
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Took 100 years to get here. Lots of conceptual
development
Constructs
Test Scores
FSIQ
WMI
PSI
PRI
VCI
si
bd
ds
cd
vo
ss
pc
ln
mr
co
g is core ingredient of all more specific
abilities
IQ is sum of subtest scores
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IQ scores differ in tilt precision
Jung Haier (2007) note a serious theoretical
problem IQ scores in (imaging) studies often
not measuring same construct(s)
Constructs
Test Scores
Different studies use different intelligence
tests.
FSIQ
?
?
WMI
PSI
PRI
VCI
si
bd
ds
cd
vo
ss
pc
ln
mr
co
g is core ingredient of all more specific
abilities
IQ is sum of subtest scores
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So, not same processes tapped
g
g, if battery broad
Gv
Gv, if battery has mostly verbal tests
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We Need Parallel Conceptual Effort for Creativity
Constructs??
Test Scores
CIQ
Jungs example today
Cartoons
MUT
GMT
CAQ
RAT

• What is the structure?
• Is there a single c?

• Domain coverage?
• Common factors?

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Intersection of 2 domains?
Often used to measure creativity
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Artifact 1

• Restriction in Range in Scores
• (whole range not sampled)

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Restricted
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(No Transcript)
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100
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Mean IQs by occupation level years education
WAIS-R IQ (mean 1 SD), US adults ages 16-74
Occupation
Professional Tech
Manager, Cler, Sales
Imaging Sample 1
Skilled
Semiskilled
Mean 1 SD
Mean 1 SD
range
Unskilled
Years education
16
13-15
Openness Sample
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9-11
Mean 1 SD
8
0-7
70 75 80 85 90 95 100
105 110 115 120 125 130
ile 2 5 10 15
25 37 50 63 75
85 90 95 98
IQ
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22
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The missing top third
Mean 1 SD
140 150 160
170 180
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What kind of creativity?
Divergent thinking
Mean 1 SD
140 150 160
170 180
Cultural-level creativity
Cox estimates
Haydn
Mozart
Beethoven
Jackson
JQ Adams
Jefferson
Lincoln
Madison
Grant
Washington
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Artifact 2

• Reliability of Measurement

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Reliability of Creativity Measures?

• Subjective ratings (self vs. other)

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Reliability of Brain Measurements?

• Lower reliability will lower correlations.
• Differential reliability will change patterns of
  correlations.

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Artifact 3

• Sampling Error
• (chance errors in reflecting full population)

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Small samples Big confusion

• Small sample Ns
• large confidence intervals (CI)
• Different sample sizes
• different confidence intervals
• Leads to
• Unstable parameter estimates
• Unstable patterns of significance

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All 3 Artifacts Chaos

• Small sample Ns
• plus
• Unreliability
• plus
• Restriction in range
• equals
• Complex pattern of results
• Specificity theories

False inferences!!
Point? Knowing amount type of artifacts helps
unmuddy the picture, as it did in personnel
selection psychology. Clockwork-like patterns
emerged.
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Questions?
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Thank you.

• www.udel.edu/educ/gottfredson