Intelligence, Heredity and Environment

Intelligence, Heredity and Environment provides a comprehensive and current survey of theory and research on human intelligence.

Robert J. Sternberg (Edited by), Elena Grigorenko (Edited by)

9780521469043, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 28 January 1997

632 pages, 33 b/w illus. 35 tables
22.9 x 14.9 x 3.4 cm, 0.83 kg

"Wahlsten and Gottlieb succeed in convincing the reader (at least this reader!) that however sophisticated a tour de force behavior genetics is, it fundamentally distorts the reality of how genes work." David Henry Feldman, Roeper Review

The debate over nature versus nurture in relation to intelligence is not as clearly drawn as it was ten years ago, when geneticists claimed that intelligence is innate, while environmentalists claimed that culture is the major determining factor. Although the debate has not been resolved, it has been significantly refined. Robert Sternberg and Elena Grigorenko address the roles and interaction of nature and nurture in Intelligence, Heredity and Environment. This book provides a comprehensive, balanced, current survey of theory and research on the origins and transmission of human intelligence. The book is unique in the diversity of viewpoints it presents, and its inclusion of the very most recent theories and findings. It highlights the search for genes associated with specific cognitive abilities, interactionist theories, cultural relativism, educational strategies, developmental perspectives, and fallacies of previous intelligence research.

Part I. The Nature-Nurture Question: New Advances in Behavior-Genetic Research on Intelligence: 1. Behavior genetics and socialization theories of intelligence: truce and reconciliation S. Scarr
2. The puzzle of nongenetic variance A. R. Jensen
3. Identifying genes for cognitive abilities and disabilities R. Plomin
4. Heredity, environment, and IQ in the Texas Adoption Project J. C. Loehlin et al.
5. IQ similarity in twins reared apart: findings and responses to critics T. J. Bouchard
Part II. Novel Theoretical Perspectives on the Genes and Culture Controversy: 6. The invalid separation of effects of nature and nurture: lessons from animal experimentation D. Wahlsten and G. Gottlieb
7. Between nature and nurture: the role of human agency in the epigenesis of intelligence T. R. Bidell and K. W. Fischer
8. A third perspective: the symbol systems approach H. Gardner and T. Hatch
9. A cultural psychology perspective on intelligence J. G. Miller
10. A bio-ecological model of intellectual development: moving beyond h2 S. J. Ceci et al.
11. An interactionist perspective on the genesis of intelligence E. W. Gordon and M. P. Lemons
Part III. Specific Issues in the Nature-Nurture Controversy: 12. Educating intelligence: infusing the Triarchic theory into school instruction R. J. Sternberg
13. Raising IQ level by vitamin and mineral supplementation H. J. Eysenck and S. J. Schoenthaler
14. The resolution of the nature-nurture controversy by Russian psychology: culturally biased or culturally Specific? E. L. Grigorenko and T. V. Korilova
15. The emerging horizontal dimension of practical intelligence: polycontextuality and boundary crossing in complex work activities Y. Engestrom et al.
16. Cognitive development from infancy to middle childhood Stacey S. Cherney et al.
17. Intelligence, language, nature, and nurture in young twins J. S. Reznick
18. Sources of individual differences in infant social cognition: cognitive and affective aspects of self and other S. Pipp et al.
Part IV. Integration and Conclusions: 19. Conclusions E. Hunt
20. Unresolved questions and future directions in behavior genetics studies of intelligence I. Waldman.

Subject Areas: Intelligence & reasoning [JMRN]