Understanding the Flynn Effect and Why It Happens

You’ve probably heard someone lament the state of â€Å"kids today†: that current generations aren’t as smart as the ones that came before them. However, psychologists who study intelligence have found that there isn’t much support for this idea; instead, the opposite may actually be true. Researchers studying the Flynn effect have found that scores on IQ tests have actually improved over time. Below, we’ll review what the Flynn effect is, some possible explanations for it, and what it tells us about human intelligence. What Is the Flynn effect? The Flynn effect, first described  in the 1980s by researcher James Flynn, refers to the finding that scores on IQ tests have increased in the past century.  Researchers studying this effect have found wide support for this phenomenon. One research paper, published by psychologist Lisa Trahan and her colleagues, combined the results of other published studies (which included a total of over 14,000 participants) and found that IQ scores have indeed increased since the 1950s. Although researchers have documented some exceptions, IQ scores have generally increased over time. Trahan and her colleagues observed, â€Å"The existence of the Flynn effect is rarely disputed.† Why Does the Flynn Effect Happen? Researchers have put forward several theories to explain the Flynn effect. One explanation has to do with improvements in health and nutrition. For example, the past century has seen a decrease in  smoking and alcohol use in pregnancy, discontinuation of the use of harmful lead paint, improvements in the prevention and treatment of  infectious diseases, and improvements in nutrition. As Scott Barry Kaufman writes for Psychology Today, â€Å"The Flynn effect serves as a reminder that when we give people more opportunities to prosper, more people do prosper.† In other words, the Flynn effect could be partially due to the fact that, over the twentieth century, we’ve started addressing many of the public health issues that prevented people in earlier generations from reaching their full potential. Another explanation for the Flynn effect has to do with societal changes that have occurred in the past century as a result of the Industrial Revolution. In a TED talk, Flynn explains that the world today is â€Å"a world where weve had to develop new mental habits, new habits of mind.† Flynn has found that IQ scores have increased the most rapidly on questions that ask us to find similarities between different things, and more abstract types of problem solving — both of which are things that we need to do more of in the modern world. Several ideas have been put forward to explain why modern society might lead to higher scores on IQ tests. For example, today, many more of us have demanding, intellectually rigorous jobs. Schools have also changed: whereas a test at school in the early 1900s might have been more focused on memorization, a recent test might be more likely to focus on explaining the reasons for something. Additionally, more people today are likely to finish high school and go on to college. Family sizes tend to be smaller, and it has been suggested that this may allow children to pick up on new vocabulary words while interacting with their parents. It’s even been suggested that the entertainment we consume is more complex today. Trying to understand and anticipate plot points in a favorite book or TV drama may actually be making us smarter. What Can We Learn From Studying the Flynn Effect? The Flynn effect tells us that the human mind is much more adaptable and malleable than we might have thought. It seems that some of our thinking patterns aren’t necessarily innate, but rather things that we learn from our environment.  When exposed to modern industrial society, we think about the world in different ways than our ancestors did. When discussing the Flynn effect in The New Yorker, Malcolm Gladwell writes, â€Å"If whatever the thing is that I.Q. tests measure can jump so much in a generation, it can’t be all that immutable and it doesn’t look all that innate.† In other words, the Flynn effect tells us that IQ may not actually be what we think it is: instead of being a measure of natural, unlearned  intelligence, it’s something that can be shaped by the education we receive and the society we live in. References: Flynn, J. (2013, March). Why our IQ levels are higher than our grandparents’. TED. https://www.ted.com/talks/james_flynn_why_our_iq_levels_are_higher_than_our_grandparentsGambino, M. (2012, December 3). Are you smarter than your grandfather? Probably not. Smithsonian. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/are-you-smarter-than-your-grandfather-probably-not-150402883/Gladwell, M. (2007, December 17). None of the above. The New Yorker. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2007/12/17/none-of-the-aboveKaufman, S.B. (2010, August 23). The Flynn effect and IQ disparities among races, ethnicities, and nations: Are there common links? Psychology Today. https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/beautiful-minds/201008/the-flynn-effect-and-iq-disparities-among-races-ethnicities-and-nationsLehrer, J. (2011, August 2). Are smart people getting smarter? Wired. https://www.wired.com/2011/08/are-smart-people-getting-smarter/Trahan, L. H., Stuebing, K. K., Fletcher, J. M., Hiscock, M. (2014). The Flynn effect: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 140(5), 1332-1360. doi:10.1037/a0037173. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4152423/Winerman, L. (2013, March). Smarter than ever? Monitor on Psychology, 44(3), 30. http://www.apa.org/monitor/2013/03/smarter.aspx

Adolf Hitlers Leadership and the Government that Follows...

Leadership, and the Government that Follows Measuring a ruler’s success can easily be defined in the satire Animal Farm. The spoof is based on a totalitarian leadership. The four main characters in this book are the pigs on the farm. They go against Napoleon’s will and represent the white movement. The reason this story becomes prevalent in the essay is because it shows how few people can turn around a society. Orwell describes in animal farm just how he got his idea for the novel. â€Å"I saw a little boy, perhaps ten years old, driving a huge cart-horse along a narrow path, whipping it whenever it tried to turn. It struck me that if only such animals became aware of their strength we should have no power over them, and that men exploit†¦show more content†¦Many know Hitler as the murderous leader of Germany in the early nineteen hundreds. Hitler was a brilliant leader arguably. Although un-ethical, he was respected. People listened to him and followed his guidance because he persuaded people so well. These people didn’t have minds of their own so he gave one to them. The rules of his leadership resided in extreme dictatorship. After World War 1, Hitler had a secured supreme political power. Hitler went on to gain their support by persuading most Germans he was their savior from the Depression, the Communists, and the Jews along with other undesirable minorities. After Hitler’s rise, he began the Nazi party. Few would have thought that the Nazi Party, starting as a gang of unemployed soldiers in 1919, would become the legal government of Germany by 1933. The Nazi party rose and crashed. It became more finalized after 1925 when Hitler was released from prison, and formally resurrected the Nazi Party. Hitler began rebuilding and reorganizing the Party, waiting for an appropriate time to gain political power in Germany. Hitler skillfully made his way through the Nazi Party politics and emerged as the sole leader. The Nazi party once again began to fall yet was saved wh en new government officials were elected and new campaigns were run. This now had captured over eighteen percent of the vote, making the Nazi party the second largest party. Leading the Nazi Party got Hitler the advertisement he needed. GermanShow MoreRelatedAdolf Hitler Essay814 Words   |  4 PagesAdolf Hitler was born on April 20th of 1889 in Austria. As a child he played â€Å"Cowboys and Indians† which had a huge influence in war since it is a game that imitates the supposed behavior of cowboys and Indians in a conflict, as in shooting, chasing, and capturing. He had found a book of the Franco-Prussian War and he had become very interested in war-related material. He was a very outgoing, confident, loving boy until his brother died of malaria, and that made him rebel against his parents andRead MoreAdolf Hitler As A Leader Of The Nazi Germany1398 Words   |  6 PagesAdolf Hitler was the leader of the Nazi Germany party from 1934 to 1945. During his time of leadership, he initiated fascist policies that ultimately led to World War II. What he is most infamous for the horrendous acts he committed against the Jewish people in Germany as well as other groups of people, such as gypsies, the handicapped, homosexuals, and many others. While Hitler is most known for the genocide he committed, he is also recognized by many historians as a powerful and effective leaderRead MoreThe Importance Of Adolf Hitler1214 Words   |  5 Pageswith Adolf Hitler’s way of leading. In fact, in the beginning they were willing to follow him and all of what he had spoken out for. However, that didn’t change the fact that there were still downsides to wh at he convinced others to believe in and what he wanted as a leader. Nonetheless, these factors don’t overcome the significance of Hitler’s leadership. The Weimar Republic was an ineffective form of government in which there was too many separate parties that stood alone. This government was unableRead More Adolf Hitler Essay1353 Words   |  6 PagesAdolf Hitler When most people think of Adolf Hitler, they think of a cruel person who killed many innocent Jews. The majority of people do not think of Hitler as the type of guy who would write plays and librettos for operas. Let alone do they think of him as the type of person who loved to read Westerns and play cowboys and Indians as a kid. Was Adolf Hitler a bad leader? Was there a side of Adolf Hitler that the world did not see? Hitler’s life impacted the world in many waysRead MoreThe Importance Of Adolf Hitler1480 Words   |  6 Pagesmind and others agree, you could rise to the top. Adolf Hitler did just that and became to be one of the most corrupt and malicious dictators of all time. Hitler’s leadership was vitally important in his time of reign in Germany because with the amount of power he gained, he had taken advantage of his own German government and as he continued, he sought to make for world domination. Like everybody in the world, people need a beginning. Hitler’s was all a matter of being in the right place at theRead MorePropaganda and Radio Broadcasting In Nazi Germany Essay1374 Words   |  6 PagesIn 1933 Adolf Hitler was chosen as Chancellor of Germany by president Paul von Hindenburg. With this, the Nazi party came to power. Originally called the National Socialist German Workers party (Nazi for short), the Nazi party emphasized how Laissez-faire capitalism, economic liberalism, and democracy failed in government. The National Socialists stressed the importance of the impeccability of the German race. Although they had very determined ideas, The Nazi party began as a relatively small groupRead MoreAdolf Hitler And The Worst Dictator1079 Words   |  5 Pages Yes, that person is Adolf Hitler who must made people angry the most about horrible things he did during his life. He made history by becoming one of the cruelest and most unjust rules of all time. Adolf Hitler did not have a really good early life at all. On April 20, 1889, Hitler was born in Branau am Inn, Austria. He grew up in a family with a stress of becoming an officer when he got out of college, and Hitler never wanted to. This was all his father’s idea. Hitler’s father was a custom officerRead MoreWorld War Two Was the Result of the Aggression and Ambition of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party991 Words   |  4 Pagesthe Result of the Aggression and Ambition of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party The causes of the Second World War at bottom relate to the rise of distinction of two powers and the relative decline of another. Those that rise to distinction were Germany and Japan that - Which declined was Britain. Germany and Japanonce that were ultimately prepared were now ready to alter the power structures in there perspective areas by force. Adolf Hitler and the Nazi ideologies were fascistsRead MoreTo What Extent Did Hitler Manipulate the German Population into Following his Nazi Regime1697 Words   |  7 Pagesregime? From 1933-1945 Adolf Hitler rose to the peak of his political power, by creating a stronghold over the German people. The use of oratory skills, in conjunction with his knowledge and use of propaganda and his suppression of details of the Holocaust, created a vibe of â€Å"electric excitement† for Germany. (Fritzsche, 1998) His targeting of the German minority and his radical push for anti-Semitism allowed Hitler to corrupt a weak and innocent nation. Manipulative leadership was a dominant forceRead MoreImportance Of Adolf Hitler1270 Words   |  6 Pagesof skills that people have to learn to run a country. But this is not the same for Adolf Hitler because he had the skills of giving excellent speeches as well as having the right evidence to back up his statements. All of these events happened after World War One so Germany was in a total economic collapse because of the Treaty of Versailles and the people were desperate to be saved from the rules they had to follow. Hitler was a Corporal during World War One, after being promoted because his entire

Comparing The Poem The Chimney Sweeper - 1374 Words

The two poems that I chose to compare are â€Å"The Chimney Sweeper† poem from both Songs of Innocence and the Songs of Experience. When my mother died I was very young, And my father sold me while yet my tongue Could scarcely cry weep! weep! weep! weep! So your chimneys I sweep in soot I sleep. There s little Tom Dacre, who cried when his head That curled like a lamb s back, was shaved, so I said, Hush, Tom! never mind it, for when your head s bare, You know that the soot cannot spoil your white hair. And so he was quiet, that very night, As Tom was a-sleeping he had such a sight! That thousands of sweepers, Dick, Joe, Ned, Jack, Were all of them locked up in coffins of black; And by came an Angel who had a bright key, And he opened the coffins set them all free; Then down a green plain, leaping, laughing they run, And wash in a river and shine in the Sun. Then naked white, all their bags left behind, They rise upon clouds, and sport in the wind. And the Angel told Tom, if he d be a good boy, He d have God for his father never want joy. And so Tom awoke; and we rose in the dark And got with our bags our brushes to work. Though the morning was cold, Tom was happy warm; So if all do their duty, they need not fear harm. â€Å"The Chimney Sweeper† from Innocence, to me, showed just that. Even though these little kids had to climb up chimney every day and will probably eventually die from it, it’ll all turn out fine because as long as they’re good,Show MoreRelatedThe Chimney Sweeper : A Little Black Thing Among The Snow1659 Words   |  7 Pagesfor their poems which would often criticize the society of the times, and often give a voice to the marginalised and oppressed. As well as this Poets would also made arresting comparisons to children in there poems, they believed children where exceptional due to the poets beliefs that they were innocent and uncorrupted, but also had an affinity with nature. A poet which did so was William Blake, whose poem ‘The chimney sweeper: A little black thing among the snow’ I will be comparing and contrastingRead MoreAnalysis Of The Poem The Chimney Sweeper 1418 Words   |  6 PagesBlake’s poem â€Å"The Chimney Sweeperâ €  is considered to be one of his finest, yet contradictory works of his life, as he provides a negative social perspective on the topic of child labour. Assisted through the use of various poetic techniques such as anecdotes, biblical illusion, symbolism, euphemism, metaphors, and rhyme, Blake was able to assertively convey his protest towards the laws against the use of young children in the British workforce. The theme of child innocence is also the other main exploredRead MoreSongs of Good and Evil1545 Words   |  7 Pagespublished his first collections of poems, Poetical Sketches, which Blake wrote over a period of fourteen years (William Blake Biography). In August 1782 Blake married Catherine Boucher, with whom he fell in love at first sight (Encyclopedia of World Biography). Blake taught Catherine to read and write, and she later became his assistant. Blake wrote Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience in 1794. With the help of his wife, Catherine, Blake hand-engraved his poems and paintings on a bronze boardRead More Comparing William Blakes The Tyger and The Lamb Essay1246 Words   |  5 PagesComparing William Blakes â€Å"The Tyger† and â€Å"The Lamb† William Blake is referred to as many things, including poet, engraver, painter and mystic, but he is probably most famous for his poetry. Blake began writing the poems below in about 1790 whilst living in Lambeth, London. His poetry has a wide range of styles but his most famous poems are those from â€Å"Songs of Innocence† and Song of Experience†. The two sets of poems are designed to show different states or ways of seeing. They are BlakesRead More Childhood in Robert Frosts Birchess and William Blakes The Chimney Sweeper1301 Words   |  6 PagesChildhood in Robert Frosts Birchess and William Blakes The Chimney Sweeper Robert Frosts view of childhood is much different than that of William Blake, as expressed in their respective poems, Birches and The Chimney Sweeper. Living in the late seventeenth century, Blake saw some hard times; and as such, paints a very non-romantic picture of childhood. Frost, however, sees things differently. The result is two glaringly different poems that goes to prove how very different people are. BlakesRead MoreDarkside of the Industrial Revolution Exposed in Poems by William Blake, Michael Thomas Sadler, and Percy Bysshe Shelley2665 Words   |  11 Pagesto do were chimney sweeping or selling matches. Adults had to do bone crushing for fertilisers, working in kitchens and doing the laundry for rich people. At the time there were three poets that all felt strongly about the appalling conditions and they were, William Blake, Michael Thomas Sadler and Percy Bysshe Shelley. Blake wrote the poems ‘London’, ‘The Chimney Sweeper Innocence’ and ‘The Chimney Sweeper Experience’. Sadler wrote ‘Factory Girl’s Last Day’ and Shelley created the poem ‘What IsRead MoreThe Chimney Sweeper and London by William Blake and Tich Miller and Timothy Winters2299 Words   |  10 PagesThe two poems â€Å"The Chimney Sweeper† and â€Å"London† by William Blake, and the two poems â€Å"Tich Miller† and â€Å"Timothy Winters† are all on a theme of childhood, however, they are set in different eras and so childhood should be very different. Discuss this, comparing and contrasting the poems. As a child, William Blake was a loner. He never socialised with other children and sat by himself reading the Bible. His family were very religious, but did not agree with organised religion. This meantRead MoreWilliam Blake Had A Strict Standard On How His Poems Should1431 Words   |  6 Pages William Blake had a strict standard on how his poems should appear. In his poems, he was not very concerned with grammar or spelling, even though he was writing in a time much after the official English language had been created. Much of his spellings are very old-fashioned to us and at times can sound very awkward. Even his readers in his time found that the wording and spelling of phrases and words was quaint. William Blake also used forms of punctuation that were not considered to be standardRead More William Blake Essay2131 Words   |  9 Pageslistened to every one of his talks. Blake is best known for intertwining his artistic talent and poetic flow. Proof of such success is seen in Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience, in which almost every poem has been engraved and beautifully sculpted onto a plaque. These two sets of poems represented what Blake believed to be the two contrary states of the human soul. Blake was considered a social critic of his own time and often thought of himself as a prophet. His criticism was a reflectionRead MoreWilliam Blake And Punk Rock Artists2086 Words   |  9 Pagesissues more known. The poet William Blake and punk rock artists The Sex Pistols both try to bring awareness and express the similar feeling of their class in society being abandoned by their government in the year they were writing their works. The poem â€Å"London† by William Blake is about the chaos and helpless situation going on in London during the french revolution in the 1790s. While â€Å"God save the queen† by the Sex Pistols is about the hopeless situation in England post World War II in the 1970s

Deviancy Defined Essay Example For Students

Deviancy Defined Essay DEVIANCY DEFINED â€Å"Men are born soft and supple; dead, they are stiff and hard. Plats are born tender and pliant; dead, they are brittle and dry. Thus whoever is stiff and inflexible is a disciple of death. Whoever is soft and yielding is a disciple of life. The hard and stiff will be broken. The soft and supple will prevail. † TAO TE CHING Moynihan measures the increased level of deviance through three major categories that he feels are responsible for the change in defining deviance. Altruistic (deinstitutionalization), opportunistic (alternative family structures), and normalizing (growing acceptance of crime) are Moynihans examples of how American society has increased beyond the levels the community can ‘afford to recognize. Andrew Karmen feels as though Moynihans expression holds some truth, but that Defining Deviance Down ignores and overlooks many examples that do not fit into his theory. Karmen does not completely disagree with Moynihans analysis, but adds another perspective that he feels is essential while addressing the topic of American behavior. Karmen measures the decreased level of deviance through numerous examples of behaviors that used to be disregarded, but are now reason for punishment. Krauthammer seems to agree with Moynihan to the degree that defining deviancy down has taken place over the past 30 years or so. However Krauthammer, is also able to recognize that defining deviancy up has taken place. As is noted in the following excerpt from Krauthammer: â€Å" As part of the vast social project of moral leveling, it is not enough for the deviant to be normalized. The normal must be found to be deviant. Therefore, while for the criminals and the crazies deviancy has been defined down (the bar defining normality has been lowered), for the ordinary bourgeois deviancy has been defined up (the bar defining normality has been raised). Large areas of ordinary behavior hitherto considered benign have had their threshold radically redefined up, so that once innocent behavior now stands condemned as deviant. † As such it would seem that to some degree that Krauthammer is also in agreement with Karmen. In so much as it relates to behaviors that used to be disregarded, but are now labeled as being deviant behavior. Where Krauthammer and Karmen differ is that Krauthammer seems to believe that the middle class family is being labeled unjustly as the production house of deviant behavior . In closing it is my opinion that the dispute if indeed there is one can be easily settled if all parties would agree to disagree and focus on those aspects that they share in common. Joining forces to generate solutions that would educate people not so much about the problem itself but about preventive measures that would help stem the spread of deviant behavior in so much as that is possible.