Thurstone Theory of Intelligence

Brief Introduction

            Louis Leon Thurstone, (1887-1955), was an American psychologist who was instrumental in the development of psychometrics, the science that assess mental functions, and improved Factor Analysis, a statistical techniques. He developed Thurstone scale, a tool to measure attitude. He was trained as mechanical engineer and briefly worked with Thomas Edison. But switched to psychology and received PhD in 1917. he established the L. L. Thurstone Psychometric Laboratory at the University of North Carolina. His work on Factor Analysis led him develop theory of intelligence which he called 7 primary mental abilities. He rejected the idea that any one factor had more general application than others and developed Primary Mental Abilities Test (1938), which measured components of human intelligence.

Theory

            He proposed the theory of primary mental abilities. It states that intelligence consists of seven primary abilities which works as a functional unity. The intelligence is the output of combined efforts of these relatively independent to each other mental abilities that themselves have a predominant primary factor. These primary abilities are:

(i)    Verbal Comprehension – The ability of grasping meaning of words, concepts, and ideas,

(ii)     Numerical Abilities – Speed and accuracy in numerical and computational skills,

(iii)      Spatial Relations – The ability of visualizing patterns and forms,

(iv)     Perceptual Speed – Speed in perceiving details of object using all five senses,

(v)    Word Fluency – The ability of using words fluently and flexibly to describe an idea or situation,

(vi)  Memory – Accuracy in recalling information from memory and memorizing capacity, and

(vii)   Inductive Reasoning – The ability of deriving general rules from presented facts, it is found in activities that need to discover rules or ideas inherent in a question or series. 

Conclusion

            The theory suggests that intelligence is not a unitary construct rather it is combination of seven primary mental abilities which are found in different individuals with varying degrees. These abilities are specific to their function and independent of each other. Whenever there is need they come together to work as a integrated group and come out with a unified solution. This theory provided base for the development of many contemporary theories.

References:

1.         NCERT. (2013). XII, Book

2.         https://www.britannica.com/biography/L-L-Thurstone.

*******