Toward a Science of Effective Cognitive Training - Claire R. Smid, Julia Karbach, Nikolaus Steinbeis, 2020

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0963721420951599


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Kevin McGrew, PhD
Educational Psychologist
Director, Institute for Applied Psychometrics
IAP
www.themindhub.com
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Be a hot or cool head.....it doesn't matter 😉

https://www.jssm.org/jssm-20-69.xml%3EFulltext

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Kevin McGrew, PhD

Educational Psychologist

Director, Institute for Applied Psychometrics

IAP

www.themindhub.com

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Where Does Creativity Come from? What Is Creativity? Where Is Creativity Going in Giftedness? | SpringerLink

Where Does Creativity Come from? What Is Creativity? Where Is Creativity Going in Giftedness? | SpringerLink
https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-56869-6_5

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Kevin S. McGrew, PhD
Educational & School Psychologist
Director
Institute for Applied Psychometrics (IAP)
https://www.themindhub.com
******************************************

New authoritative APA Handbook of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

https://www.apa.org/pubs/books/apa-handbook-intellectual-developmental-disabilities

Will be available shortly after the first of the year

Testing Our Children When the World Shuts Down: Analyzing Recommendations for Adapted Tele-Assessment during COVID-19 - Shelley Kathleen Krach, Tracy L. Paskiewicz, Malaya M. Monk, 2020

Testing Our Children When the World Shuts Down: Analyzing Recommendations for Adapted Tele-Assessment during COVID-19 - Shelley Kathleen Krach, Tracy L. Paskiewicz, Malaya M. Monk, 2020 
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0734282920962839

Abstract
In 2017, the National Association of School Psychologists described tele-assessment as the least researched area of telehealth. This became problematic in 2020 when COVID-19 curtailed the administration of face-to-face assessments. Publishers began to offer computer-adapted tele-assessment methods for tests that had only previously been administered in person. Recommendations for adapted tele-assessment practice had to be developed with little empirical data. The current study analyzed recommendations from entities including professional organizations, test publishers, and governmental offices. The samples for each were small, but the findings were noteworthy. Test publishers were unanimous in recommending the use of their face-to-face assessments through adapted tele-assessment methods (either with or without caution). Governmental agencies were more likely to recommend not using adapted tele-assessment methods or to use these methods with caution. Finally, professional organizations were almost unanimous in their recommendations to use adapted tele-assessment but to do so with caution. In addition to deviations in the types of recommendations provided, entities varied in how the information was distributed. About one-fifth (23.5%) of all entities surveyed provided no recommendations at all. About 45% of the remaining entities provided recommendations on their Web sites. The rest provided information through shared documents, online toolkits, peer-reviewed journals, and emails. Implications for the field of psychology's future crisis management planning are discussed in response to these findings.
Keywords tele-assessment, validity, best practices, technology, assessment, COVID-19, crisis, program evaluatio

A CHC model of cognitive adapted to African culture. Towards a Model of Valued Human Cognitive Abilities: An African Perspective Based on a Systematic Review | Psychology

Thought provoking adaptation and extension of CHC theory of intelligence to African culture. Double click on image to enlarge.

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.538072/full

Towards a Model of Valued Human Cognitive Abilities: An African Perspective Based on a Systematic Review

Seth Oppong*

Department of Psychology, University of Botswana, Gaborone, Botswana

Studies that investigate cognitive ability in African children and estimate the general cognitive abilities of African adults tend to work with existing models of intelligence. However, African philosophy and empirical studies in cross-cultural psychology have demonstrated that conceptualizations of human cognitive ability vary with location. This paper begins with the assumption that the existing Anglo-American models of cognitive abilities are valuable but limited in their capacity to account for the various conceptualizations of valued cognitive abilities in different human societies. On the basis of this assumption, I employ extant empirical evidence generated through ethnographic studies across Africa to formulate what an African model of valued human cognitive ability
ought to be. The output of this formulation has been so christened a model of valued cognitive ability in order to draw attention to the fact that models of cognitive abilities have currency and values in each human society. This value allocation is expected to influence which elements of cognitive ability each human society will promote and develop. In
addition, implications for theory, research and praxes are discussed.

Keywords: African models, intelligence, cognitive abilities, Africa, valued human cognitive abilities

The big picture ecological systems perspective of intelligence (and IQ tests): Is COVID disrupting and rearranging the hierarchy of ecological system influences on children's learning?

Understanding intelligence testing in the context of Bronfrenbrenner's ecological systems model--is COVID seriously damaging, rearranging, decoupling, etc. the major proximal and distal sources of influence on a child's learning, resulting in a need to look closer at non-cognitive (conative) variables...beyond IQ?

This morning I revisited one of my favorite videos (of those I have posted), first posted in 2015, where I explained how intelligence testing needed to be understood in the context of distal and proximal influences in a child's environment.  I believe that a "big picture" understanding of the wide range of variables that influence school learning requires a "humbling" of the status of intelligence testing, a field where I have spent the majority of my professional career.  After one finishes the video, think about the "big picture" ecological systems model that is described. IMHO, COVID may be seriously impacting that the primary distal and proximal variables that influence (both positively and negatively) school learning (national educational policy; school systems and local community sources of formal and informal support; individual schools; the lack of in class learning; parents working from home or being unemployed), as well as peer interactions in a child's neighborhood (due to social distancing).  Stare at the final big picture figure and reflect on how COVID is disrupting all the primary sets of variables that influence school learning.  The range of disrupted causal influences is staggering. 

The end result, for many children, is learning via distance learning methods, often with the aid of parents who are not educators.  Although intelligence is very important, and may be more important as children must use their abilities to learn more independently, it strikes me that at this point in our countries (global) current crises, it may be the non-cognitive variables that might need better understanding and enhancement.  That is, the conative (aka., noncognitive) "beyond IQ" variables of motivation and self-regulated learning (aka., a part of volition) may be more important today than ever.  To engage in independent, loosely (dis)organized instruction, students who have strong motivation and independent self-regulation learning strategies may have a distinct advantage--those who do not, may be at a serious disadvantage.  Jack Carroll's seminal model of school learning, that spawned decades of research on models of school learning, reminds us, in elegant terms, that aside from key student individual difference variables, the quantity (opportunity for instruction) and quality of instruction are key variables in school learning.  Both of these are being seriously impacted due to COVID.

COVID appears to be a high level all encompassing distal variable (wielding impact at the global, national, community, and school system levels) that is rearranging the the relative importance of  variables in school learning.  Students now, and in the future, may need more assistance in acquiring critical non-cognitive motivational dispositions and independent self-regulated learning strategies in order to maximize what they can from their repertoire of cognitive abilities in order to continue and maintain academic growth.  If may be necessary to revise the degree of influence of distal and proximal school learning influence variables as per Bronfrenbreener's ecological systems model.

Creativity and Innovation in Times of Crisis (COVID-19) | Frontiers Research Topic

Creativity and Innovation in Times of Crisis (COVID-19) | Frontiers Research Topic
https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/13833/creativity-and-innovation-in-times-of-crisis-covid-19#articles

And more research suggesting that attentional control (AC) may be central to human intelligence

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S002396902030182X?via%3Dihub 

Click on image to enlarge.


******************************************************
Kevin McGrew, PhD
Educational Psychologist
Director, Institute for Applied Psychometrics
IAP
www.themindhub.com
******************************************************

Intellectual Disability: Definition, Diagnosis, Classification, and Systems of Supports, 12th Edition

Coming in January

Measurement Matters. Andrew Conway on measurement of intelligence on channel g

Measurement Matters
https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/blog/channel-g/202012/measurement-matters

Decker provides cogent response to Dombrowski et al's "all there is is g" bifactor intelligence research

 https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0734282920977718

Abstract
The current article provides a response to concerns raised by Dombrowski, McGill, Canivez, Watkins, & Beaujean (2020) regarding the methodological confounds identified by Decker, Bridges, Luedke, and Eason (2020) for using a bifactor (BF) model and Schmid–Leiman (SL) procedure in previous studies supporting a general factor of intelligence (i.e., "g"). While Dombrowski et al. (2020) raised important theoretical and practical issues, the theoretical justification for using a BF model and SL procedure to identify cognitive dimensions remain unaddressed, as well as significant concerns for using these statistical methods as the basis for informing the use of cognitive tests in clinical applications

No negative Flynn effect in France: Why variations of intelligence should not be assessed using tests based on cultural knowledge - ScienceDirect

Article link - Intelligence

Abstract
In 2015, Dutton and Lynn published an account of a decrease of intelligence in France (negative Flynn effect) which had considerable societal impact. This decline was argued to be biological. However, there is good reason to be skeptical of these conclusions. The claim of intelligence decline was based on the finding of lower scores on the WAIS-III (normed in 1999) for a recent sample, but careful examination of the data suggests that this decline was in fact limited to subtests with a strong influence of culture-dependent declarative knowledge. In Study 1, we re-analyzed the data used by Dutton and Lynn (2015) and showed that only subtests of the WAIS primarily assessing cultural knowledge (Gc) demonstrated a significant decline. Study 2 replicated this finding and confirmed that performance was constant on other subtests. An analysis of differential item functioning in the five subtests with a decline showed that about one fourth of all items were significantly more difficult for subjects in a recent sample than in the original normative sample, for an equal level of ability. Decline on a subtest correlated 0.95 with its cultural load. These results confirm that there is currently no evidence for a decrease of intelligence in France, with prior findings being attributable to a drift of item difficulty for older versions of the WAIS, due to cultural changes. This highlights the role of culture in Wechsler's intelligence tests and indicates that when interpreting (negative) Flynn effects, the past should really be treated as a different country.

CHC taxonomy of human cognitive abilities v 2.5: A silent movie animationed presentation

 An oldie but goodie prior post.

 

Flicker fusion thresholds as a clinical identifier of a magnocellular-deficit dyslexic subgroup

Flicker fusion thresholds as a clinical identifier of a magnocellular-deficit dyslexic subgroup
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-020-78552-3?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

View the article + more on Flipboard.
https://flip.it/ARJPFW

Find your favorite topics on Flipboard. Download here.
http://flip.it/now

Sent from my iPhone

NCME ITEMS e-learning module -- Foundations of IRT

https://ncme.elevate.commpartners.com/products/digital-module-19-foundations-of-irt-estimation

Are individual differences in attention control related to working memory capacity? A latent variable mega-analysis. - PsycNET

And yet more good research implicating attentional control (AC under Gwm in CHC taxonomy) as central to human intelligence.

Are individual differences in attention control related to working memory capacity? A latent variable mega-analysis. - PsycNET 
https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2020-86314-001

Citation
Unsworth, N., Miller, A. L., & Robison, M. K. (2020). Are individual differences in attention control related to working memory capacity? A latent variable mega-analysis. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General.Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1037/xge0001000

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Abstract
The current study examined whether there are coherent individual differences in attention control abilities and whether they are related to variation in working memory capacity. Data were pooled from multiple studies over 12 years of data collection. Mega-analyses on the combined data set suggested that most of the attention control measures had adequate reliabilities and were weakly to moderately related to one another. A number of latent variable mega-analyses suggested that the attention control measures loaded onto a broad attention control factor and this factor was consistently related to working memory capacity. Furthermore, working memory capacity was generally related to each individual attention control measure. These results provide important evidence for the notion that there is a coherent attention control factor and this factor is related to working memory capacity consistent with much prior research. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved)

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Kevin S. McGrew, PhD
Educational & School Psychologist
Director
Institute for Applied Psychometrics (IAP)
https://www.themindhub.com
******************************************

More support for the Gs—>Gwm—>—Gf/ Gc developmental cascade model as per CHC taxonomy

 More support for the developmental cascade model

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0160289620300817?via%3Dihub

Speed of processing, control of processing, working memory and crystallized and fluid intelligence: Evidence for a developmental cascade 

Anna Tourva, George Spanoudis

 

Keywords: Fluid intelligence Crystallized intelligence Working memory Speed of processing Executive attention Developmental-cascade model 

A B S T R A C T  

The present study investigated the causal relations among age, speed of processing, control of processing, working memory and intelligence, fluid and crystallized. 158 participants aged from 7 to 18 years old completed a large battery of tests measuring latent factors of speed, control of processing and working memory. Intelligence was assessed using the Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence. Structural equation modeling was performed to determine whether there is a cognitive-developmental cascade in which age-related increases in processing speed lead to improvements in control of processing that leads to increases in working memory, and whether improved working memory, in turn, leads to increases in both fluid and crystallized intelligence. Several alternative models of a different cascade order of the above factors were also tested. The results of the present study provide evidence of a cognitive-developmental cascade, confirming that this model describes cognitive development during childhood and adolescence.  

Click images to enlarge.

Development and psychometric properties of rubrics for assessing social-emotional skills in youth - ScienceDirect

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0191491X20301863 
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0191491X20301863?via%3Dihub

Paper from excellent group of scholars doing critical work on "BEYOND IQ" factors.

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Kevin S. McGrew, PhD
Educational & School Psychologist
Director
Institute for Applied Psychometrics (IAP)
https://www.themindhub.com
******************************************

Toward a hierarchical model of social cognition: A neuroimaging meta-analysis and integrative review of empathy and theory of mind-file under Gei per CHC taxonomy.

 Toward a hierarchical model of social cognition: A neuroimaging meta-analysis and integrative review of empathy and theory of mind. 
https://psycnet.apa.org/fulltext/2020-82377-001.html
Toward a Hierarchical Model of Social Cognition: A Neuroimaging Meta-Analysis and Integrative Review of Empathy and Theory of Mind
Matthias Schurz , Joaquim Radua, Matthias G. Tholen, Lara Maliske, Daniel S. Margulies, Rogier B. Mars, Jerome Sallet, Philipp Kanske
Author Affiliations  
Schurz, M., Radua, J., Tholen, M. G., Maliske, L., Margulies, D. S., Mars, R. B., . . . Kanske, P. (2020). Toward a hierarchical model of social cognition: A neuroimaging meta-analysis and integrative review of empathy and theory of mind. Psychological Bulletin. Advance online publication. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/bul0000303
Abstract

Along with the increased interest in and volume of social cognition research, there has been higher awareness of a lack of agreement on the concepts and taxonomy used to study social processes. Two central concepts in the field, empathy and Theory of Mind (ToM), have been identified as overlapping umbrella terms for different processes of limited convergence. Here, we review and integrate evidence of brain activation, brain organization, and behavior into a coherent model of social-cognitive processes. We start with a meta-analytic clusteringof neuroimaging data across different social-cognitive tasks. Results show that understanding others' mental states can be described by a multilevel model of hierarchical structure, similar to models in intelligence and personality research. A higher level describes more broad and abstract classes of functioning, whereas a lower one explains how functions are applied to concrete contexts given by particular stimulus and task formats. Specifically, the higher level of our model suggests 3 groups of neurocognitive processes: (a) predominantly cognitive processes, which are engaged when mentalizing requires self-generated cognition decoupled from the physical world; (b) more affectiveprocesses, which are engaged when we witness emotions in others based on shared emotional, motor, and somatosensory representations; (c) combined processes, which engage cognitive and affective functions in parallel. We discuss how these processes are explained by an underlying principal gradient of structural brain organization. Finally, we validate the model by a review of empathy and ToM task interrelations found in behavioral studies.
Public Significance Statement

Empathy and Theory of Mind are important human capacities for understanding others. Here, we present a meta-analysis of neuroimaging data from 4,207 participants, which shows that these abilities can be deconstructed into specific and partially shared neurocognitive subprocesses. Our findings provide systematic, large-scale support for the hypothesis that understanding others' mental states can be described by a multilevel model of hierarchical structure, similar to models in intelligence and personality research.

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Kevin S. McGrew, PhD
Educational & School Psychologist
Director
Institute for Applied Psychometrics (IAP)
https://www.themindhub.com
******************************************