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Carbon is to life as g is to _____: A review of the contributions to the special issue on specific abilities in intelligence

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  • Coyle, Thomas R.
  • Greiff, Samuel

Abstract

Just as carbon infuses all life forms, g infuses almost all aspects of cognitive performance. This Special Issue focuses on specific abilities, defined as distinct abilities (e.g., verbal, math, spatial) that differ conceptually and empirically from g, which refers to variance common to tests. The nine contributions examine different specific abilities (e.g., spatial, academic, executive), involve different samples (e.g., humans, animals, countries), and compare different groups (e.g., males and females; gifted and nongifted). The contributions are discussed in terms of their support for a “primacy of g hypothesis,” which assumes that the validity of tests is largely attributable to g, or a “more than g hypothesis,” which assumes that specific abilities contribute to the validity of tests beyond g. The article summarizes each contribution and discusses models and theories of g and specific abilities (e.g., Cattell-Horn-Carroll and Verbal-Perceptual-Image Rotation models; investment and differentiation theories), with a focus on future research on specific abilities. Taken together, the contributions show that specific abilities are a meaningful addition to g but that their validity depends on the particular abilities, models, and theories being examined.

Suggested Citation

  • Coyle, Thomas R. & Greiff, Samuel, 2023. "Carbon is to life as g is to _____: A review of the contributions to the special issue on specific abilities in intelligence," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:intell:v:101:y:2023:i:c:s0160289623000673
    DOI: 10.1016/j.intell.2023.101786
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Coyle, Thomas R., 2022. "Sex differences in spatial and mechanical tilt: Support for investment theories," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    2. Coyle, Thomas R., 2020. "Sex differences in tech tilt: Support for investment theories," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    3. Ree, Malcolm James & Carretta, Thomas R., 2022. "Thirty years of research on general and specific abilities: Still not much more than g," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    4. Pokropek, Artur & Marks, Gary N. & Borgonovi, Francesca & Koc, Piotr & Greiff, Samuel, 2022. "General or specific abilities? Evidence from 33 countries participating in the PISA assessments," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 92(C).
    5. Coyle, Thomas R., 2018. "Non-g residuals of group factors predict ability tilt, college majors, and jobs: A non-g nexus," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 67(C), pages 19-25.
    6. Coyle, Thomas R., 2023. "Sex differences in tech tilt and academic tilt in adolescence: Processing speed mediates age-tilt relations," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 100(C).
    7. Blum, Diego & Holling, Heinz, 2017. "Spearman's law of diminishing returns. A meta-analysis," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 60-66.
    8. Geary, David C., 2022. "Spatial ability as a distinct domain of human cognition: An evolutionary perspective," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 90(C).
    9. Coyle, Thomas R., 2022. "Processing speed mediates the development of tech tilt and academic tilt in adolescence," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).
    10. Feraco, Tommaso & Cona, Giorgia, 2022. "Differentiation of general and specific abilities in intelligence. A bifactor study of age and gender differentiation in 8- to 19-year-olds," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 94(C).
    11. Procopio, Francesca & Zhou, Quan & Wang, Ziye & Gidziela, Agnieska & Rimfeld, Kaili & Malanchini, Margherita & Plomin, Robert, 2022. "The genetics of specific cognitive abilities," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    12. Demetriou, Andreas & Mougi, Antigoni & Spanoudis, George & Makris, Nicolaos, 2022. "Changing developmental priorities between executive functions, working memory, and reasoning in the formation of g from 6 to 12 years," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 90(C).
    13. Wai, Jonathan & Lakin, Joni M. & Kell, Harrison J., 2022. "Specific cognitive aptitudes and gifted samples," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 92(C).
    14. Woodley of Menie, Michael A. & Peñaherrera-Aguirre, Mateo & Jurgensen, JohnMichael, 2022. "Using macroevolutionary patterns to distinguish primary from secondary cognitive modules in primate cross-species performance data on five cognitive ability measures," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 92(C).
    15. Becker, David & Coyle, Thomas R. & Minnigh, Tyler L. & Rindermann, Heiner, 2022. "International differences in math and science tilts: The stability, geography, and predictive power of tilt for economic criteria," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 92(C).
    16. Reynolds, Matthew R. & Hajovsky, Daniel B. & Caemmerer, Jacqueline M., 2022. "The sexes do not differ in general intelligence, but they do in some specifics," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 92(C).
    17. Coyle, Thomas R. & Greiff, Samuel, 2021. "The future of intelligence: The role of specific abilities," Intelligence, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
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