Introduction

Individual Differences in Human Functioning

If you observe your friends, classmates, or relatives, you will notice how they differ from each other in the way they perceive, learn, and think, as well as in their performance on various tasks. Such individual differences can be seen in every walk of life. That people differ from one another is obvious.

In Class XI, you learned about psychological principles that help us understand human behaviour. But we also need to know how people differ, what causes these differences, and how such differences can be assessed. One of the main concerns of modern psychology, since the time of Galton, has been the study of individual differences.

Assessment of Psychological Attributes

Psychologists use different methods to assess psychological attributes. These methods help in understanding the range and nature of variations among people.

Intelligence

One of the most popular psychological attributes that has interested psychologists is intelligence. People differ from each other in their ability to understand complex ideas, adapt to their environment, learn from experience, engage in various forms of reasoning, and overcome obstacles.

The chapter covers several aspects of intelligence:

• The nature of intelligence
• Changing definitions of intelligence over time
• Cultural differences in intelligence
• The range and variations in intellectual competencies of people
• The nature of special abilities or aptitudes

Theories of Intelligence

The chapter introduces several important theories:

• Theory of Multiple Intelligences
• Triarchic Theory of Intelligence
• Planning, Attention-arousal, and Simultaneous-successive Model of Intelligence

Individual Differences in Intelligence

The chapter also discusses:

• Variations of intelligence
• Some misuses of intelligence tests
• Culture and intelligence
• Emotional intelligence and characteristics of emotionally intelligent persons
• Special abilities: aptitude, its nature and measurement
• Creativity