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BY G. MacLEOD ROSS
Recent findings by. the
`Sunday Times' Science
correspondent, *supported, the
belief that physical inheritance
might be the crucial influence on
human intelligence, a rather than
environment. This- week we
• concern ourselves with an
explosive issue: An analysis of
racial differences in intelligence,
and seek to expose reasons why
some races perform better than
others in intelligence tests; a fact
which is not in serious dispute.
• • .In America for' example, the
average I.Q. of the Black
population is 15 points below
that of the White average. At
least in theory, there is no
reason why this gap should not
be as much the product of
differences in environment, as
differences in their inheritance.
A correspondent has suggested
that the American Negro is not
representative of the Negro race
as a whole, since the former are
the descendants of the people
caught and sold by coloured
slave - traders to White - -slave
dealers and, as in the arg finent
regarding Jews, it was the smart
ones which escaped the n t.
w,r
JENSEN ON INHERITED
INTELLIGENCE
Plrofessor Jensen of the
University of California, is at
pains to point out that the full
range of human ability is present
in all races. He also contends the
I.Q._ of a race is no guide to the
of .any particular individual
in that race. While he admits his
evidence is not strong, . the
possibility of the gap being due
to inheritance , is worth pursuing.
If there is some hereditary
difference between the
American Black and the
American White, then it should
be taken into account when
social policy is formulated. For
example, the ratio, birthrate to
I.Q. among Negroes is different
from the ratio for the White
population. At the lower end of
the I.Q. scale, the Negro birth
rate is particularly high. At the
upper end it is low. So, he asks:
Is there the possibility . that
Current welfare -policies; unaii ect
by eugenic foresight, may lead
to genetic enslavement?"
Jensen continues that the
• poverty ,of the Negro
environment is not a sufficient
'explanation for the I.Q. gap.
When Whites and Blacks from
very similar social and.economic
backgrounds are compared, .the
difference of the . Average
intelligence is reduced, -but only
by four out of 15 points.
American Indians, whose social
and educational environment is
even worse tlfan that of the
Negroes, score higher in I.Q.
tests than do Negroes.
In 1967, in ai Californian
* school, children *ere divided
into four groups based ori their
parents socio-economic class.
The I.Q. of the average Negro
from the top S/E group was
lower than that of average White
children from the *lowest S/F
group. Although economic
circurristances • affect
performance in I.Q. tests,
something else must be at work.
In Ne4v ,York different groups of
Jewish, Negro, Chinese and
Puerto o Rican children were
tested. Results showed that
children of middle class parents
put - up a better performance
than those of poor parents.
Furthermore their skills varied.
Jewish children were high on
verbal tests, but less able in
spatial and visual ones. Chinese
and Puerto Ricans did well on
visual tests but low on verbal,
probably because they had to be
bilingual. [Will the drive to make
Canadians bi-langue lower the
'4,
:t4
1
in intelligence
national I.Q.?] Negro children
do well in verbal tests but poorly'
in . those involving numbers.
[Another surprise since the
`Numbers Game' is so popular
with the Negroes.] All these
results COULD be the difference
in physical inheritance, an
environmental factor which is
hard to measure.
The intricacy of the problem
which Jensen set himself appears
as - the Matter is further
considered. Two American
statisticians have argued that
Jensen's gap could ' be just as
easily the result of
environmental factors. They do
not think the evidence adds up
to anything. But they do point
out a factor which is often
forgotten: That Blacks are
constantly discriminated against;
something which could make
their I.Q. scores lower --without.
any inherited racial difference in.
intelligence. Possibly too, Blacks
as a whole resent having to take
"White tests", which are part of
the Whiteman's social system,
more especially as six per cent of
Black Americans want to set up
a separate State. This could well
depress the average scores.
Something similar could account
for the disparity between
American Indians and American
Blacks. The . former being in a
minority, may have abandoned
hope of ever achieving
independence from White
domination. In consequence
they.. are more_,ready to accept
the tests.
Because there are factors
involved, which- cannot be
separated.out, Professor Thotay,
of Cambridge University,
beliedes it logically impossible to
prove whether .genetic factors
are involved with racial
differences in I.Q.'s. The
problem could only be solved in
an ideal society, where -
everybody was treated as an
individual, regardless of race.
ENVIRONMENTAL
FACTORS
That the contribution which
environment makes is
considerable, is,suppbrted b_ythe
case of identical twins. separated
early in life and reared apart.
One twin had only three years of
elementary schooling, -while the
other took a university degree.
Their I.Q. difference was 24
points, . which must have been
due solely to environment.
Clearly much can be done by
manipulating environment.
What are the environmental
factors which influence
intelligence? Apart from serious
neglect and ill treatment, there is
that vague term: "Social
Deprivation," so dear to the
hearts of the psychologists,
which is regarded as a great
intelligence .depressant. Its
manifestations are lack of
attention and intellectual
stimulation of children by their
parents. Working mothers do not
smile, or play with their infants
as much as middle class mothers.
They do not reward each step
toward maturity as much. They
do not talk to their children as
much, hence the development of
a vocabulary is neglected; a most
important attribute for making
progress in school. It is carried
over into the interest shown in
the child's progress which is
much more by the middle class
than by a working parent.
Attempts in the U.S.A. to
improve . the intellectual
environment shows that in 29
programmes, the average gain
was five to 10 points, which is
better than nothing, but it still
leaves a typical. I.Q. range of
50-85; far below the average.
These programmes only last for
perhaps a single year for each
individual child and it is not
hard to - see that such a short
exposure cannot counteract
factors which . have been at work
environmentally , during the
whole of the child's life.
EDUCATIONAL SYSTEMS
What about comprehensive
versus selective education in
Britain? Very often belief in the
hereditary factor is taken as the
automatic reason for selective -
treatment, but it embraces other
assumptions ,as well. For
example, to screw the best
possible academic achievement
out of the very bright, must be
the , prime educational aim, for
here is the ' material for
tomorrows managers of the
nation's prosperity. But the •
efficient functioning of any
organisation depends on the
right balance between education
and training at all levels. What is
the value of a super -efficient
staff if the salesman at the
counter level does not try to
sell? What is the value of our
Canadian integrated defense
force if, inspite of ori inspired
staff, it is found that the
mixture . is wrong. That we have
too many intrepid airmen and
not enough wielders (If the
bundook?
Perhaps an increased
educational investment in the
less bright would be more
productive? This was the .belief
in - 1870 when elementary
schooling became compulsory.
Later- - it was- the reason for
Comprehensives, where the less
bright are held to benefit most.
Comprehensives favour - the
promotion of social cohesion
which may well determine
economic efficiency or, the
overriding consideration might
be equality for its own sake.
'i•i.°re is after all, no test for
political wisdom as a
qualification either for the vote
or for cabinet office, as is
demonstrated day after day at
both Federal and Provincial
levels herabouts.
Whilst a large hereditary
component of intelligence may
. not justify selective education,
equality of education is not
going to eliminate genetic
differences. It only makes them
more important than ever. But
equality of educational
opportunity makes for social -
mobility between the classes and
increases the tendency for
classes to be based on inherited
intelligence differences. This is
the thing, above all others,
which makes the hereditability
of intelligence an issue of real
social importance and not a
sterile academic wrangle.
When Michael Young wrote
"The Rise of Meritocracy," ten
years ago, his meritocratic
society was overthrown by
revolution. But would the
necessary tensions develop, for a
revolution if everyone gravitated .
naturally to his or her place in
.the meritocracy, without being
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pushed? Bereiter points out that
a technological society
emphasises the importance of
differences in- intelligence,
because ° intellectual
accomplishment serves to drive
wedges between those who
possess it and those who do not.
Reading should be taught' to all,
but what about computer •
programming? What happens
when we have a domestic
computer? Will this produce a
meritocratic caste system, asks
Bryan Silcock?
Speaking as a lone voice in
the wilderness, it would be very
surprising if it did. Presumably
the average household will give.
their computer much more usage
than they give their plumber
today. Therefore anyone
investing in a domestic computer -
will require itsoperation to be
simplified ' to suit their
non-s-pe-cialised intelligence.
Surely there will be something
like a cassette, or a• record,
which will take all the
mathematical ability out . of
'programmingr the computer.
There will be one cassette for
Income ._tag calculations and
another when you wish to
compare the price of beef,
butter or eggs over that
demanded by five grocers in
your' locality: You do not have
to understand the working of
the telephone, or the TV set, in
order to get their.to function
for you, and you are still not an,
expert in either. -
Perhaps Dr. Silcock wished to
make our flesh creep. He goes on
to suggest "Assortative Mating"
as another result of the
technological society, in which
partners will decide to marry
those with the same I.Q., thus
further augmenting ' the
rigidification of the caste
system, a system which will tend'
to persist even though everyone,
at all levels, in the hierarchy,
considers it a bad thing. And.the
fact that assortative mating for
intelligence is higher than for
any other trait so far
investigated, is perhaps the
strongest piece of evidence that
progress towards this caste
system is already well advanced'
* Dr. Bryan Silcock.
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