Thurstone’s theory of primary mental aptitudes

Thurstone criticized the idea of unitary intelligence and proposed that it was divided into abilities.

Thurstone's theory of the 7 primary mental aptitudes, which appeared in the 1920s, is one of the most important models of intelligence.which appeared in the 1920s, is one of the most important psychological models of intelligence in existence.

The differential characteristic of this author in relation to others of the time was his focus on the multiple character of intellectual aptitudes, thus opposing Spearman's g factor.

Thurstone's theory of intelligence

Louis Leon Thurstone (1887-1955) is considered one of the most influential authors in the field of psychometrics. His main contribution is his theory of the 7 primary mental aptitudesThurstone was opposed to the unitary and hierarchical models of intelligence proposed by other pioneers such as Charles Spearman or P. E. Vernon.

In particular, Thurstone denied the existence of a general intelligence factor (the famous "g factor") to which all other cognitive capacities would be subordinated. For this author intelligence should be understood as a set of primary mental aptitudes, not reducible to a single dimension of intelligence. not reducible to a single higher-level dimension.

Along with authors such as Charles Spearman and Raymond B. Cattell, Thurstone is considered one of the main authors responsible for the establishment of factor analysis methods. for the establishment of factor analysis methods in psychology.. These mathematical tests aim to identify the number and structure of the various factors that weigh on some kind of psychological measure.

Thurstone's goal was to find a configuration of intelligence that was faithful to the empirical data but kept as simple as possible; i.e., he sought to explain the different aptitudes that make up intelligence, he sought to explain the different aptitudes that make up intelligence with a few higher-order with a few higher-order factors. Each of these maintained a strong correlation with a particular type of intellectual test.

The influence of Thurstone's work has been very noticeable in later developments in the psychology of intelligence. Thus, we can find the inspiration of the model of primary mental aptitudes in the most recent versions of such important tests as the Wechsler Intelligence Scales and the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale.

The 7 primary mental aptitudes

Following his first investigation, for which he used 56 different intelligence tests, Thurstone identified nine factors or primary mental aptitudes.

Numerous subsequent studies have repeatedly validated 7 of these factors, so that we can say that Thurstone's model is robust in its measurability.

Verbal comprehension (factor v)

The verbal comprehension factor is associated with knowledge of language in all its manifestations. in all its manifestations; it would therefore include vocabulary, semantics, syntax or pragmatics. Tests weighted in factor v include tests of reading comprehension, ordering of text segments, spelling, verbal analogies, etc.

Verbal fluency (w)

This skill can be defined as a person's ability to deliver coherent and structured verbal sequences quickly and naturally. Various measures are used to measure it types of tests that involve rapid speech production.For example, one could use the classic test of giving names of animals beginning with a certain letter.

3. Numerical aptitude (n)

Numerical aptitude tests consist mainly of basic mathematical calculations: addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. Although they can be more complex, simple arithmetic computational tasks are weighted most heavily in the n factor; the most relevant aspects are the speed of the operations and the accuracy of the answers..

4. Spatial ability (s)

The s factor manifests itself in spatial orientation, in the representation of objects in space or in rotation tasks; since these are very broad abilities, spatial aptitude is often divided into two categories. spatial aptitude is often divided into two or three secondary factors. Relevant tests involve prediction of movements, comparison of figures from different perspectives, etc.

5. Associative memory (m)

This factor is associated with a specific aspect of memory: the ability to retain associations of pairs of items.. Thus, tests involving images, words (in visual or auditory format), symbols, etc. are used to measure associative memory; they can be presented in the same modality or in combinations of more than one of these materials.

6. Speed of perception (p)

In the p factor weights all those cognitive tests cognitive tests based on the comparison between different elements or on the identification of structures and or on the identification of structures and sequences. Therefore, the aptitude that Thurstone called "speed of perception" refers to the speed with which we find the similarities and differences between various items.

7. General reasoning (r) or induction (i)

Some of the research that has been done on Thurstone's model distinguishes in part the r factor from the i factor. While the latter corresponds to the capacity for inductive thinking (finding general rules with (finding general rules with predictive value from series of elements), "general reasoning" has a more marked mathematical weight.