In a study, researchers administered a battery of cognitive tests to 500 adults. They found that performance on vocabulary, mathematical reasoning, spatial rotation, and processing speed were all positively correlated. A factor analysis extracted a single dominant factor that accounted for a substantial portion of the variance across tests, while leaving smaller residual variance unique to each subtest.
The dominant factor extracted is best identified as
- A
Sternberg's practical intelligence component
- B
Cattell's crystallized intelligence only
- Ccheck_circle
Spearman's general intelligence factor (g)
- D
Gardner's bodily-kinesthetic intelligence
Explanation
Spearman proposed that positive intercorrelations among diverse cognitive tests reflect a general intelligence factor (g) underlying all mental abilities.