In this article, I consider relationships between creativity and ethics, and how they apply in society. I argue that ethical reasoning requires creative thinking at various junctures. I present an 8-step model of ethical reasoning, delineating how creativity can be applied at various steps. Finally, I draw conclusions about how the model can be…

The isolation of the components of intelligent performance and applicability of the componential analysis method to tasks other than analogies are discussed. The article also examines the structure of a componential analysis, the precuing method of task decomposition, and new methods for isolating components in a variety of reasoning tasks.…

The goal of this unified theory of human reasoning is to specify what constitutes reasoning and to characterize the psychological distinction between inductive and deductive reasoning. The theory views reasoning as the controlled and mediated application of three processes (encoding, comparison and selective combination) to inferential rules. (JAZ)

Four experiments compared three alternative models of linear syllogistic reasoning: (1) linguistic; (2) spatial; and (3) mixed linguistic-spatial. The mixed model, indicating the importance of both verbal and spatial ability, was supported by all four experiments, and for about three-fourths of the undergraduate students studied. (Author/GDC)

A theory of the nature of mental abilities is presented. In this theory, mental abilities are hierarchically organized into four progressively deeper levels--the levels of composite tasks, subtasks, information-processing components, and information-processing metacomponents. Composite tasks can be decomposed into subtasks, subtasks into…

Intelligence can be best understood through the study of nonentrenched, i.e., novel, kinds of tasks. Such tasks require subjects to use concepts or form strategies that differ in kind from those to which they are accustomed. The only partial success of the cognitive-correlates and cognitive-components approaches to intelligence that are in…

A progress report of work done in formulating a theory of deductive reasoning is given. Models for the three main kinds of syllogisms that have been investigated by students of human reasoning (categorical, conditional, and linear) have been formulated and tested. The theory and data for each of the three kinds of syllogisms is summarized. Some…

An information-processing assessment of the construct validity of aptitude tests is presented. It is stated that aptitude tests have been rather successful because they possess high construct validity, although the constructs in terms of which the tests may be most profitably understood are information-processing rather than psychometric ones. It…

In this report, three theories of transitive inference are compared as they apply to the solution of linear syllogisms: a spatial theory, a linguistic theory, and a new mixed linguistic-spatial theory. Each theory is expressed in terms of an information-processing (flow chart) model and a mathematical model that quantifies the…

An information-processing framework is presented for understanding intelligence. Two levels of processing are discussed: the steps involved in solving a complex intellectual task, and higher-order processes used to decide how to solve the problem. (MH)

Two influential theories of intellectual development are reviewed and analyzed: the psychometric framework, based on the factorial composition of intelligence, and the Piagetian model, based on assimilation and accomodation through four stages of intellectual development. A third concept is the componential theory of intelligence, based on…

About 25 children in each of grades 3, 5, 7, 9, and 11 were tested in their ability to solve linear syllogisms, such as: John is taller than Mary. Mary is taller than Pete. Who is tallest--John, Mary, or Pete? Response latencies and error rates decreased across grade levels and sessions. Component latencies also generally decreased with increasing…

Linear syllogisms present two premises, each describing a relation between two terms. The individual's task is to infer the relation among the three terms of the linear syllogism, and then answer a question about one or more of these relations. For example, "John is taller than Bob. Sam is shorter than Bob. Who is the tallest?" Students…

Developmental patterns in the solution of verbal analogies, especially the recognition of higher-order analogical relations, were traced. The investigation sought to: (1) provide new developmental tests of a componential theory of analogical reasoning; (2) identify strategy changes during the transition from midchildhood (grade 3) to adulthood…

An aptitude-strategy interaction in linear syllogistic reasoning was tested on 144 undergraduate and graduate students of both sexes. It was hypothesized that the efficiency of each of four alternative strategies--control, visual, algorithmic, and mixed--would depend upon the subjects' pattern of verbal and spatial abilities. Two tests of verbal…