Views of Intelligence Across Cultures
A. In recent years, researchers have found that people in non-Western cultures often have
ideas about intelligence that are considerably different from those that have shaped
Western intelligence tests. This cultural bias may therefore work against certain groups of
people. Researchers in cultural differences in intelligence, however, face a major dilemma,
namely: how can the need to compare people according to a standard measure be balanced
with the need to assess them in the light of their own values and concepts?
B. For example, Richard Nesbitt of the University of9
Michigan concludes that East Asian
and Western cultures have developed cognitive styles that differ in fundamental ways,
including how intelligence is understood. People in Western cultures tend to view
intelligence as a means for individuals to devise categories and engage in rational debate,
logical
whereas Eastern cultures see it as a way for members of a community to recognize
contradiction and complexity and to play their social roles successfully. This view is
backed up by Sternberg and Shih-Ying, from the University of Taiwan, whose research
5
shows that Chinese conceptions of intelligence emphasize understanding and relating to
others, and knowing when to show or not show one’s intelligence. empatihze = cảm thông
C. The distinction between East Asia and the West is just one of many distinctions that
separate different ways of thinking about intelligence. Robert Serpell spent a number of
years studying concepts of intelligence in rural African communities. He found that people
in many African communities, especially in those where Western-style schooling is still
6
uncommon, tend to blur the distinction between intelligence and social competence. In
rural Zambia, for instance, the concept of nzelu includes both cleverness and responsibility.
Likewise, among the Luo people in rural Kenya, it has been found that ideas about
intelligence consist of four broad concepts. These are named paro or practical thinking,
luoro, which includes social qualities like respect and responsibility, winjo or
comprehension and rieko. Only the fourth corresponds more or less to the Western idea of
intelligence.
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D. In another study in the same community, Sternberg and Grogorenko have found that
children who score highly on a test of knowledge about medicinal herbs, a test of practical
intelligence. This suggests that practical and academic intelligence can develop
independently of each other, and the values of a culture may shape the direction in which
a child’s intelligence develops. It also tends to support a number of other studies which
suggest that people who are unable to solve complex problems in the abstract can often
solve them when they are presented in a familiar context. Ashley Maynard, for instance,
now professor of psychology at the University of Hawaii, conducted studies of cognitive
development among children in a Mayan village in Mexico using toy looms, spools of
thread an other materials drawn from the local environment. The research suggested that
the children’s development could be validly compared to the progression described by
Western theories of development, but only by using materials and experimental designs
based on their own culture.
12 F
E. The original hope of many cognitive psychologists was that a test could be developed
that was absent of cultural bias. However, there seems to be an increasing weight of
evidence to suggest that this is unlikely. Raven’s Progressive Matrices, for example, were
11. D
originally advertised as ‘culture free’ but are now recognized as culturally loaded. Such
non-verbal intelligence tests are based on cultural constructs which may not appear in a
particular culture. It is doubtful whether cultural comparisons of concepts of intelligence
will ever enable us to move towards creating a test which encompasses all aspects of
10 C
intelligence as understood by all cultures. It seems even less likely that such a test could be
totally free of cultural imbalance somewhere. The solution to the dilemma seems to lie
more in accepting that cultural neutrality is unattainable and that administering any valid
intelligence test requires a deep familiarity with the relevant culture’s values and practices
pronounce: cuisine
Questions 1-4
Reading Passage has five sections, A-E
Choose the correct heading for sections B-E from the list of headings below
List of Headings
i. Research into African community life
ii. Views about intelligence in African societies
iii. The limitations of Western intelligence tests
iv. The Chinese concept of intelligence
v. The importance of cultural context in test design
vi. The disadvantages of non-verbal intelligence tests
vii. A comparison between Eastern and Western understanding of intelligence
viii. Words for ‘intelligence’ in African languages
ix. The impossibility of a universal intelligence test
Example Section A iii
1. Section B
2. Section C
3. Section D
4. Section E
Questions 5-9
Look at the following findings (Questions 5-9) and the list of researchers below
Match each finding with the correct researcher, A-E
List of findings
5. There is a clear relationship between intelligence and relationships with others in
Chinese culture.
6. The difference between intelligence and social competence is not distinct in many
African communities.
7. Children frequently scoring well in practical tests score less well in academic tests.
8. In experiments to measure cognitive development, there is a link between the materials
used and the test results.
9. The way cognition is viewed in East Asian cultures differs fundamentally from those in
Western cultures.
List of researchers
A. Richard Nesbitt
B. Robert Serpell
C. Ashley Maynard
D. Sternberg and Shih-Ying
E. Sternberg and Grogorenko
Question 10-12
The list below gives statements about non-verbal intelligence tests.
Which THREE statements are mentioned by the writer of the passages?
A. Raven’s Progressive Matrices are widely considered to be culturally free.
B. Cultural comparisons will allow the development of culturally neutral tests.
C. The development of culturally neutral tests is unlikely.
D. Raven’s Progressive Matrices are culturally specific.
E. The creation of culturally-free tests is sometimes possible.
F. Many cognitive psychologists originally hoped tests could be developed free of cultural
bias.
Question 13
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C or D
Which of the following is the main argument of the article?
A. Intelligence tests should include tests of social skills and responsibility.
B. Test takers from any culture can learn the cognitive style required by Western
intelligence tests.
C. Intelligence tests cannot be free of cultural bias.
D. More research is needed to develop an intelligence test which is valid for all cultures
Want To Be Friends?
Could the benefits of online social networking be too good to miss out on?
A. For many hundreds of thousands of people worldwide, online networking has become
enmeshed in our daily lives. However, it is a decades-old insight from a study of
traditional social networks that best illuminates one of the most important aspects of
today’s online networking. In 1973 sociologist Mark Granovetter showed how the loose
acquaintances, or weak ties, in our social network exert a disproportionate influence over
our behavior and choices. Granovetter’s research showed that a significant percentage of
people get their jobs as a result of recommendations or advice provided by a weak tie.
Today our number of weak-tie contacts has exploded via online social networking. 'You
couldn’t maintain all of those weak ties on your own, ' says Jennifer Golbeck of the
University of Maryland, 'Online sites, such as Facebook, give you a way of cataloguing
them.' The result? It’s now significantly easier for the schoolfriend you haven't seen in
years to pass you a tip that alters your behaviour, from recommendation of a low-
cholesterol breakfast cereal to a party invite where you meet your future wife or husband.
B. The explosion of weak ties could have profound consequences for our social structures
too, according to Judith Donath of the Berkman Genter for Internet and Society at
Harvard University. 'We’re already seeing changes, ' she says. For example, many people
now turn to their online social networks ahead of sources such as newspapers and
television for trusted and relevant news or information. What they hear could well be
inaccurate, but the change is happening nonetheless. If these huge 'supernets' - some of
them numbering up to 5, 000 people - continue to thrive and grow, they could
fundamentally change the way we share information and transform our notions of
relationships.
C. But are these vast networks really that relevant to us on a personal level? Robin
Dunbar, an evolutionary anthropologist at the University of Oxford, believes that our
primate brains place a cap on the number of genuine social relationships we can actually
cope with: roughly 150. According to Dunbar, online social networking appears to be
very good for 'servicing' relationships, but not for establishing them. He argues that our
evolutionary roots mean we still depend heavily on physical and face-to-face contact to
be able to create ties.
D. Nonetheless, there is evidence that online networking can transform our daily
interactions. In an experiment at Cornell University, psychologist Jeff Hancock asked
participants to try to encourage other participants to like them via instant messaging
conversation. Beforehand, some members of the trial were allowed to view the Facebook
profile of the person they were trying to win over. He found that those with Facebook
access asked questions to which they already knew the answers or raised things they had
in common, and as result were much more successful in their social relationships.
Hancock concluded that people who use these sites to keep updated on the activities of
their acquaintances are more likely to be liked in subsequent social interactions.
E. Online social networking may also have tangible effects on our well-being. Nicole
Ellison of Michigan State University found that the frequency of networking site use
correlates with greater self- esteem. Support and affirmation from the weak ties could be
the explanation, says Ellison. 'Asking your close friends for help or advice is nothing
new, but we are seeing a lowering of barriers among acquaintances, ' she says. People are
readily sharing personal feelings and experiences to a wider circle than they might once
have done. Sandy Pentland at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology agrees. The
ability to broadcast to our social group means we need never feel alone/ he says. The
things that befall us are often due to a lack of social support. There’s more of a safety net
now.'
F. Henry Holzman, also at MIT, who studies the interface between online social
networking and the real world, points out that increased visibility also means our various
social spheres - family, work, friends - are merging, and so we will have to prepare for
new societal norms. ‘We’ll have to learn how to live a more transparent life, ’ he says.
We may have to give up some ability to show very limited glimpses of ourselves to
others.’
G. Another way that online networking appears to be changing our social structures is
through dominance. In one repeated experiment, Michael Kearns of the University of
Pennsylvania asked 30 volunteers to quickly reach consensus in an online game over a
choice between two colours. Each person was offered a cash reward if they succeeded in
persuading the group to pick one or other colour. All participants could see the colour
chosen by some of the other people, but certain participants had an extra advantage: the
ability to see more of the participants' chosen colours than others. Every time Kearns
found that those who could see the choices of more participants (in other words, were
better connected) persuaded the group to pick their colour, even when they had to
persuade the vast majority to give up their financial incentive. While Kearns warns that
the setting was artificial, he says it’s possible that greater persuasive power could lie with
well-connected individuals in the everyday online world too.
Questions 14-19
The Reading Passage has seven paragraphs, A-G.
Choose the correct heading for paragraphs B-G from the list of headings below.
Write the correct number, i-x.
List of Headings
I A shift in our fact-finding habits
Il. How to be popular
III. More personal information being known
IV. The origins of online social networks
V. The link between knowledge and influence
VI. Information that could change how you live
VII. The emotional benefits of online networking
VIII. A change in how we view our online friendships
IX. The future of networking
X. Doubts about the value of online socialising
14 Paragraph B
15 Paragraph C
16 Paragraph D
17 Paragraph E
18 Paragraph F
19 Paragraph G
Questions 20-23
Look at the following findings and the list of researchers below.
Match each finding with the correct researcher, A-F.
List of Findings
A Mark Granovetter
B Judith Donath
C Robin Dunbar
D Jeff Hancock
E Nicole Ellison
F Michael Kearns
20 People who network widely may be more able to exert pressure on others.
21 We have become more willing to confide in an extensive number of people.
22 There is a limit to how many meaningful relationships we can maintain.
23 There is a social advantage in knowing about the lives of our online contacts.
Questions 24-125
Choose TWO answers, A-E.
Which TWO of these advantages of online social networking are mentioned in the
Reading Passage?
A Social networking sites can be accessed on any day and at any time.
B Online socialising is an efficient way of keeping in touch with a lot of people.
C It is very easy to establish new friendships online.
D Online social networking can solve problems in real-world relationships.
E It can be reassuring to be part of an online social network.
24 …………………
25 …………………
Questions 26-27
Choose TWO answers, A-E.
Which TWO of these disadvantages of online social networking are mentioned in the
Reading Passage?
A Information from online social contacts may be unreliable.
B We may become jealous of people who seem to have a wide circle of friends.
C We may lose the ability to relate to people face-to-face.
D It is easy to waste a lot of time on social networking sites.
E Using social networking sites may result in a lack of privacy.
26 …………………
27 …………………