Robert Sternberg - UW: Test Bed Stuff

At the heart of Sternberg's training program is his triarchic theory. His program begins with a discussion and critique of the major approaches to intelligence ... Thissitewilllookmuchbetterinabrowserthatsupportswebstandards,butitisaccessibletoanybrowserorInternet device. SkipNavigationskipmenuandbanner UWHome WyoWeb AboutUW Apply A-ZDirectory Phone/E-mail SearchUW THERELEVANCEOFROBERTSTERNBERG'STRIARCHICTHEORY OFHUMANINTELLIGENCEFORADULTEDUCATION by BurtonR.Sisco Dean,CollegeofEducation,RowanUniversity Abstract|Introduction|Purpose|Triarchic Theory|Adult Education|References PublishedinProceedingsofthe30AnnualAdultEducation ResearchConference(pp284-289),Madison,WI:UniversityofWisconsin-Madison, April27-29,1989. Abstract: ThispaperintroducesanddiscussestherelevanceofRobert Sternberg'striarchictheoryofhumanintelligenceforadulteducation. INTRODUCTION Everyonceinawhile,someonecomesalongwhohasthepower tochangecurrentthinking.JeanPiagetdidthisforearlychildhoodeducation asPeterDruckerdidformanagementandorganizationaldevelopment.In thefieldofadulteducation,AllenToughofferednewinsightsintothe areaofself-directedlearningwhichchangedthecourseofhistory.And ofcourse,MalcolmKnowleshaslefthismarkwiththepopularizationof andragogy.RobertSternberg,atrailblazerincognitivepsychology,has offerednewideasdealingwithhumanintelligencethatnotonlypropose toalterthedisciplineofpsychology,butadulteducationaswell.His "triarchictheoryofhumanintelligence"offersamoreholisticunderstanding ofintelligenceandthewaywelearn.Althoughmanytheoriesofintelligence exist,Sternberg'stheoryisparticularlynoteworthybecauseitsubsumes elementsofothertheoriesofintelligencebysynthesizingmuchofwhat isknownaboutintelligenceintoacoherentandcomprehensiveform(Farr andMoon,1988). PURPOSE,SCOPE,ANDAPPROACH Thepurpose ofthisstudywastoinvestigateSternberg'striarchictheoryofhuman intelligenceandtoseeifithadanyrelevanceforadulteducation.An intensivereviewofadulteducationliteraturerevealedvirtuallynoattention toSternberg'sworkwiththeexceptionofFarr(1987),FarrandMoon(1988) andSisco(1988)sotheinquirywasjudgedtobepotentiallysignificant. SincethestudyinvolvedsynthesizingknowledgeandinformationfromSternberg's workandhiscolleaguesandthenintroducingittoanotherfieldordiscipline, itisbestdescribedasaformofmeta-research.Thispaperintroduces Sternberg'sintelligencetheoryanddiscussesitspossibleconnections toadulteducationtheoryandpractice.Itisimportanttonotethatthe presentstudywasexploratoryinnature,designedtopromotedialogue anddiscussionamongadulteducators.Datasourcesincludedbooks,articles, andmonographswrittenbyoraboutRobertSternbergandhistriarchic theoryofhumanintelligence.Primarysourceswereexaminedsoastoconstruct anunderstandingoftheoriginsofSternberg'stheoryanditsevolution todate.Relevantadulteducationliteraturewasalsoexamined. STERNBERG'STRIARCHICTHEORY OFHUMANINTELLIGENCE AccordingtoSternberg(1988),thestudyofhumanintelligence"has notbeennotableforrapidprogress,eitherintheoryorapplication" (p.4).Thisisprobablyanunderstatementsincethetestsusedtomeasure intelligencelookprettymuchthesamewaytodayaswhentheywerefirst introducedsomesixtyorseventyyearsago.Traditionalconceptions ofintelligencehavebeenfairlynarrowinfocus,oftendirectlylinked tohowwellpeopleperforminschool.Asaresult,intelligencehas becomesynonymouswithacademicachievement. ThistraditionalviewofintelligencehashauntedSternbergsincehis earlydaysingradeschool.Apparently,heperformedsopoorlyonIQ testsinfifth-gradethathewasnearlykeptfromprogressingtosixth-grade. Aretestundermorerelaxedcircumstancessavedhimfromsuchembarrassment andlead,ashehaswritten,to"mylifelonginterestinintelligence" (1988,p.x).Today,althoughbarelyfortyyearsofage,heisarguably themostcelebratedauthorityonmattersdealingwithhumanintelligence. TheevolutionofSternberg'sthinkingabouthumanintelligencedid notoccurovernight.Duringthelate1970s,he,likemanyotherinvestigators ofintelligence,wasbusilyinvolvedintheinformation-processinganalysis ofintelligence-testitems.ThisworkprovedunsatisfactoryforSternberg sincehebegantoquestiontheassumptionunderlyingthisanalysisthat suchitemsprovideareasonablycomprehensivepictureofintelligence (1987b,1985a).HisownexperiencewithgraduatestudentsatYaleUniversity seemedtobeliethisview.Someofhisstudentscamewithimpeccable credentials--highaptitudetestscores,outstandingcollegegrades, excellentlettersofrecommendation--whileothershadgoodgrades,but abysmalaptitudetestscores.Stillotherswereverygoodonalmost everymeasureofabilitytosucceedingraduateschool,butnottruly outstandingonanyofthem.WhatreallyintriguedSternbergisthat bytheendoftheirgraduateprograms,someofthestudentswhostarted outatthetopoftheclassfinishednearthemiddleandvice-versa. Thiscausedhimtolookmorediligentlyatthefactorsassociatedwith humanintelligencesincetheusualmeasureofpotentialperformance hadnotprovedtobereliablypredictive. Toexplainthisphenomenon,Sternbergbegantoseeintelligence"in termsofthreedistinctbutinterrelatedaspects;theinternalworld oftheindividual,theexternalworldoftheindividual,andtheexperience oftheindividual"(1987a,p.50).Hereasonedthateachoftheseaspects involvedifferentmentalprocessesandabilities.Forexample,theinternal aspectofintelligenceemphasizesanalyticabilities,theexternalaspect adaptiveabilities,andtheexperientialaspectsyntheticabilities. Withthisinmind,Sternbergproposedhistriarchictheoryofhuman intelligenceasameansofdealingwithallthreeaspectsofintelligence. Hecogentlysummarizedhismotivationforamorecoherentexplanation ofintelligentbehaviorbywriting,"Theconvergenceofmyanalysis oftheresearchliteratureandmypersonalexperienceconvincedmethat whatwasneededwasa'triarchic'theoryofhumanintelligence--one thatdidjusticetoeachofthesethreeaspects"(1988,p.58). AccordingtoSternberg(1985a),thetriarchictheoryseekstounderstand humanintelligenceintermsofthreesubtheories:acontextualsubtheory thatrelatedintelligencetotheexternalworldoftheindividual;a componentialsubtheorythatrelatedintelligencetotheinternalworld oftheindividual;andanexperientialsubtheorythatappliestoboth theinternalandexternalenvironments.Thecontextualsubtheoryfocuses onintelligentbehaviorintheeverydayworld.Hereindividualsmay choosetoadapttotheirenvironment,selectanothermoredesirable environment,ortrytomodifytheenvironmentsoastobettermeettheir needs.Thecomponentialsubtheoryfocusesonthekindsandidentities ofmentalprocessesinvolvedinintelligentthought.Threedifferent kindsofcomponentsareinvolvedincludingmetacomponents(executive processesusedtoplan,monitor,andevaluateaproblem),performance components(mentalprocessesthatexecutetheinstructionsofthemetacomponents suchasencoding,inferring,applying,andcomparing),andknowledge-acquisition components(processesusedinlearninghowtosolveaproblemorin learningnewfactsorconcepts).Theexperientialsubtheoryfocuses ontheroleofexperienceinintelligentbehavior.Here,theability tocopewithnoveltyandtoautomatizefamiliartasksareintimately related.Superiorabilitytodealwithnoveltyenablestheindividual tomovemorerapidlyandeffectivelytowardautomization.Similarly, superiorautomizationabilityfreesmorementalresourcesfordealing withnovelty.Thus,themoreaspectsofataskorsituationareautomatized, themoreonecanfocusattentiononthenovelaspectsofthetaskor situation.Sternberg(1985a)capturesthepowerofhistheorybynoting, "Behaviorisintelligenttotheextentthatitis(a)usedintheadaptation to,selectionof,orshapingofone'senvironment;(b)responsiveto anovelkindoftaskorsituationorintheprocessofbecomingautomatized; and(c)theresultofmetacomponential,performance-componential,or knowledge-acquisitionfunctioningofthekindspecifiedbythecomponential subtheory"(p319). Inadditiontothetriarchictheory,Sternberghasalsofocusedhis talentsonanumberofrelatedtopicsincludingthestudyofcreativity andwisdom(1985c,1986b,)anunderstandingofpracticalintelligence (Wagner&Sternberg,1985;Sternberg&Wagner,1986),therelationship betweenintelligenceandtacitknowledge(Wagner&Sternberg,1985), andthetrainingofintelligence(1986a,1987a,b,1988).Tothisend, hehasdevotedconsiderableattentiontothedevelopmentofatraining programdesignedtohelppeopleincreasetheirintellectualskillsas wellastobetterunderstandtheseskills.Mostrecently,hehasfocused hisattentiononthedevelopmentofatheoryofmentalself-government thatproposesasetofintellectualstylesasabridgebetweenintelligence andpersonality.Accordingtothetheory,intellectualstylescanbe understoodasgovernmentalin(a)function(legislative,executive, judicial),(b)form(monarchic,hierarchic,oligarhic,anarchic)(c) level(global,local),(d)scope(internal,external)and(e)leaning (conservative,progressive).Sternbergbelievesthat"thesestylescan beusedtoexplainandpredictaspectsofperformanceinschool,on thejob,andinpersonallifethatcannotbedirectlyattributedto intelligence"(1988,p.275). RelevanceforAdultEducation ThehumanintelligenceworkofRobertSternbergappearstooffera numberofnotablepossibilitiesforadulteducationandseemstobe particularlyrelevanttobothpractitionersandtheoreticiansalike. Onesuspectsthatincomingyears,Sternberg'sworkwillbelookedto forguidance,explanation,andedification.Alreadythisistruein publicschoolswherechallengestotraditionalIQtestingarebeing made.However,inadulteducation,theimpactofhisworkremainsto beseen.Thus,discussionwhichfollowswillhopefullysparkgreater dialogueamongadulteducatorsregardingSternberg'swork.Oneofthe mostsignificantimplicationswouldappeartobesomethingthatmany adulteducatorshavebelieved,atleastimplicitly,foralongtime now;thathumanintelligenceismuchmorethanperformanceonstandardized testsandachievementinschools.Wehaveallexperiencedtheoccasion whencertainparticipantsinourprogramsperformedpoorlyonstandardized testsandyetperformedsplendidlyintheiractualclassassignments. Perhapsasawayofexplainingthisphenomena,wereasonedthatsuch peoplemustbe"underachievers"orwelookedforsourcesoftheirpuzzling behavioroutsideoftheirmeasuredintelligence.Wemightevenhave thoughtthattheremustbemoretointelligencethanthetestsmeasure. Theproblemhasbeenthatprevailingintelligencetheorieshavecontinued tostressperformanceonstandardizedtestsasevidenceclaimsinthe faceofenormousempiricalandpoliticalsupportfrompsychometricians andpsychologistsaliketestifyingtotheefficacyofconventionalintelligence testingandcommensurateintelligencetheories.Addtothis,analmost atheoreticalstancebymanyadulteducatorsandtheplotthickens. Sternbergbelievestheseconventionalnotionsofintelligenceand companionteststobefatallyflawedandprovidesconvincingevidence tosupporthisclaims(1985a,d).Forexample,theproblemwithmost intelligencetheoriesandsupportingtestsistheytendtoemphasize speedandaccuracyofprocessingandoftenconsistoftasksthathave nothingtodowithperformanceinreal-worldsettings.Sternberg(1984b) arguesthatmostoftheconsequentialtaskspeoplefaceinlifedonot requireproblemsolvingordecision-makinginthefewsecondstypically allottedforthesolutionofIQtestproblems.Rather,theyrequire anintelligentallocationofone'stimetothevarioussubproblemsor problemsathand. Sternberggoesevenfurtherinhiscritiqueofconventionalintelligence testingbynotingthattheysimplydoapoorjobofpredictingperformance intherealworld.Considertwoobservations.First,withsurprising frequency,individualswithhistoriesofremarkableperformanceinformal schoolingareonlymoderatelysuccessfullyintheiroccupations,and conversely,individualswithunremarkableacademicrecordsarehighly successfulintheiroccupations.Second,manyprofessionalsreportthat mostifnotallofthelearningthatreallymatteredtotheircareers tookplaceaftercompletionoftheirformaltraining(Wagner&Sternberg, 1985).Theobviouspointinallofthis,accordingtoSternberg,is thatintelligenceismorethanwhatvariousmeasuresofschoolachievement andstandardizedtestsmeasure(1987a).Itisaqualitythatweuse continuallyinoureverydaylives--onthejob,inourinterpersonal relationships,indecisionmaking.Histriarchictheory,whichexplicates therelationshipoftheinternalworldoftheindividual,theexternal worldoftheindividual,andtheroleofexperience,helpsadulteducators tounderstandthedynamicandinterrelatedqualitiesofhumanintelligence anditspotentialbearingineverydaylife.Thus,adulteducatorshave attheirdisposal,atheoreticalmodelthatcanbeappliedtothevary contextsthatconstitutesomuchofadulthood:theeverydayworld. AnotherimplicationofSternberg'sworkishisassumptionthatintelligence canbetaught.Infact,hehasdevotedanentirebookfortrainingintellectual skillsatthehighschoolandcollegiatelevel(1986a).Amorerecent book(1988)hasbeendevelopedforusebythelaypublic.Attheheart ofSternberg'strainingprogramishistriarchictheory.Hisprogram beginswithadiscussionandcritiqueofthemajorapproachestointelligence followedbyanexplicationofhistriarchictheorythathebelieves doesjusticetothefullrangeofthoughtandbehaviorthatconstitutes intelligence.Thetriarchictheoryisthendiscussedindetailfollowed byin-depthtreatmentofeachsubtheorywithappliedexamplesandexercises. Afinalpartofthisprogramdealswithtypicalimpedimentstothefull realizationofone'sintelligencesuchaslackofmotivation,lackof impulsecontrol,lackorperseverance,inabilitytotranslatethought intoaction,fearoffailureprocrastination,distractibilityandso forth(1987a).ThemainstrengthofSternberg'sintelligencetraining programisthatitisbasedonatheorythathasbeensubjectedtofairly extensiveandrigorousempiricaltesting.Itemphasizesabroadrange ofintellectualskillsandfocusesonacademicaswellaspractical intelligence.Finally,theprogramhasassessmenttoolsformeasuring trainingeffects.Sternberg'sintelligencetrainingprogramwouldseem tobeofvitalinteresttoadulteducationpractitionersatalllevels frombasiceducationthroughgraduatestudyinthatitpresumesadevelopmental epistemologyaswellasanappliedapproachtointellectualaugmentation. AnadditionalimplicationofSternberg'striarchictheorymaybein therealmoffurtherinformingadulteducationtheoryandpractice. SomewriterssuchasBrookfield(1986)andCourtney(1986)havegone sofarastoquestionifadulteducationcaneverattainageneraltheory ofadultlearning,Merriam(1987)suggeststhatalthoughoneunified adultlearningtheorymayneveremerge,"theorybuildingeffortsin adultlearningdocontributetoourgrowingunderstandingofadultlearning" (p.197).Bright(1988)islesstolerantandacceptingofadulteducation effortstodate.Hebelievesthat"epistemologicalvandalism"hasoccurred inrelationtoadulteducationandpsychology.Hecitesthreemajor epistemologicalissueswithinthisrelationship;1)theoriginofknowledge currentlybeingusedwithinadulteducation;2)theselectionofknowledge contentwithincurriculainadulteducation;3)thestatusofthisderived knowledgeatthehandsofadulteducation.Brightreinforceshisargument bynotingthatthetreasuredadulteducationtheoryofandragogyhis itsrightfulrootsinHumanisticPsychologyandthatthisattribution hasonlybeenselectivelyacknowledged.Inaddition,Brightmaintains thatpsychologicalknowledgehasreceivedahighlevelofabbreviation andlackofdetailintheteachingandresearchofadulteducation. Beingsympathetictobothpointsofview,itistheopinionofthis authorthatSternberg'sworkdoeshavemuchrelevancetoadulteducation theoryandpractice.Thefactthatadulteducatorshavefocusedattention onthecharacteristicsofadultlearnersinanefforttodistinguish theirfieldfromotherareasofeducationseemsinescapable(Brookfield, 1986).Inevitably,suchcharacteristicsasreadinesstolearn,self-direction inlearning,appliedlearningorientation,andextensiveexperience areusedtodescribeadultlearnersanddifferentiatethemfromtheir youngercounterparts.Theproblemhasbeenthatthereisverylittle empiricalevidencetosubstantiatesuchclaims.Sternberg'striarchic theoryappearstooffersomeclaritytothisotherwisemuddledsituation. Hisacknowledgementthatintelligentbehaviorconsistsofmental,social, andexperientialskillsandabilitiesisanexcellentstartingpoint. SotooishisassertionthatIQmatterslessinadult-hood;tacitknowledge--what peopleneedtoknowinordertogetalongintheirenvironment--isfar moreimportant.Withcarefulattentiontothetriarchictheory,adult educatorscanbegintounderstandthecomprehensivenatureofhuman intelligenceanditsimpactinreal-worldsettings.Moreimportantly, adulteducatorshavesolidtheoreticalmodelthatconfirmsandsubstantiates theirowntacitexperience. ThehumanintelligenceworkofRobertSternbergprovidesabasefor newthinkingaboutadultlearningandeducationaswellnewvistasfor researchandpractice.Thisbriefdiscussionhashopefullyprovided anintroductiontoapromisingtheoreticalperspectiveandencouraged dialogueandactionamongadulteducatorseverywhere. REFERENCES Bright,B.P.(1988).Epistemologicalvandalism:Psychologyinthestudy ofadulteducation.ProceedingsoftheTransatlanticDialogue:AResearch Dialogue,Leeds,UK:UniversityofLeeds. Brookfield,S.D.(1986).Understandingandfacilitatingadultlearning. SanFrancisco:Jossey-Bass. Courtney,S.(1986).Onderivationoftheresearchquestion.Adult EducationQuarterly,36(3),160-165. Farr,C.W.(1987).Effectsofinferencingonverbalabilitiesandmathematics problemsolvingamongadultbasiceducationstudents.Unpublisheddoctoral dissertation,UniversityofWyoming,Laramie,WY. Farr,C.W.&Moon,C.E.(1988).SomeimplicationsofSternberg'striarchic theoryforadultbasiceducation.Proceedingsofthe29thAnnualAdult EducationResearchConference(pp.109-114).Calgary,CN:University ofCalgary. Merriam,S.B.(1987).Adultlearningandtheorybuilding:Areview. AdultEducationQuarterly,37(4),187-198. Sisco,B.R.(1988).Cognitioninadulthood.Proceedingsofthe29th AnnualAdultEducationResearchConference(pp.331-333).Calgary,CN: UniversityofCalgary. Sternberg,R.J.(1984a).Towardatriarchictheoryofhumanintelligence. BehavioralandBrainSciences,7,269-287. Sternberg,R.J.(1984b).Whatshouldintelligenceteststest?Implications ofatriarchictheoryofintelligenceforintelligencetesting.Educational Researcher,13,(1),5-15. Sternberg,R.J.(1985a).BeyondIQ:Atriarchictheoryofhumanintelligence. Cambridge,UK:CambridgeUniversityPress. Sternberg,R.J.(1985b).Humanintelligence:Themodelisthemessage. Science,230(4730),1111-1118. Sternberg,R.J.(1985c).Implicittheoriesofintelligence,creativity, andwisdom.JournalofPersonalityandSocialPsychology,49,(3),607-627. Sternberg,R.J.(Ed).(1985d).Humanabilities:Aninformation-processing approach.NewYork:W.H.Freeman. Sternberg,R.J.(1986a).Intelligenceapplied:Understandingandincreasing yourintellectualskills.SanDiego:HarcourtBraceJovanovich. Sternberg,R.J.(1986b).Intelligence,wisdom,andcreativity:Three isbetterthanone.EducationalPsychologist,21(3),175-190. Sternberg,R.J.(1987a).Teachingintelligence:Theapplicationof cognitivepsychologytotheimprovementofintellectualskills.InJ. Baron&R.Sternberg(Eds.),Teachingthinkingskills:Theoryandpractice. NewYork:W.H.Freeman. Sternberg,R.J.(1987b).Thetriarchictheoryofhumanintelligence. InRichardson,J.T.E.,Eysenck,M.W.,&Piper,D.W.Studentlearning: Researchineducationandcognitivepsychology.MiltonKeynes,UK:Open PressUniversity. Sternberg,R.J.(1988).Thetriarchicmind:Anewtheoryofhumanintelligence. NewYork:VikingPenguin. Sternberg,R.J.&Wagner,R.K.(Eds.).(1986).Practicalintelligence: Natureandoriginsofcompetenceintheeverydayworld.Cambridge,UK: CambridgeUniversityPress. Wagner,R.K.&Sternberg,R.J.(1985).Practicalintelligenceinreal-world pursuits:Theroleoftacitknowledge.JournalofPersonalityandSocial Psychology,49(2),436-458. Home Session1 Session2 Session3 Session4 Session5 Session6 --HowardGardner --RobertSternberg --Issues --Resources Session7 Session8 Session9 Session10 Session11 Session12 Session13 Session14 Resources ©2022UniversityofWyoming Disclaimer [email protected] ReportaPageProblem