For over two thousand years, debates about human intelligence remained trapped in philosophical speculation, with no scientific foundation for understanding why people differ in mental ability. Jensen's work tackles this fundamental problem by examining decades of rigorous psychometric research that reveals a startling discovery: all cognitive abilities share a single underlying factor called g, or general intelligence. This short systematically dismantles competing theories while demonstrating how g connects to biological processes, genetic inheritance, and real-world outcomes from education to employment. Through careful analysis of factor analysis, brain imaging studies, and population data, Jensen shows that g represents measurable differences in neural efficiency rather than cultural bias or learned skills. His work answers one of psychology's most contentious questions, challenging both blank-slate ideology and simplistic notions of multiple intelligences.
Arthur Jensen was a renowned psychologist and professor at the University of California, Berkeley, who became one of the most influential figures in intelligence research. His rigorous application of factor analysis and psychometric methods helped establish the scientific foundation for understanding general intelligence as a measurable psychological construct. Jensen's extensive research on cognitive processing, heritability, and population differences sparked decades of scientific debate while advancing the field's methodological sophistication and bridging psychology with genetics and neuroscience.
If you liked this book, you'll probably like these books as well.
Robert Sapolsky
Human behavior reflects biological and social influences working across microseconds and millennia.
19:28 min
Richard Dawkins
Nature's apparent complex and purposeful design is only explained by one miraculous process.
20:06 min
Geoffrey West
Infinite growth, finite world. Are scaling laws a genius discovery of the modern age?
17:14 min
Charles Murray
Addressing intelligence may be scary, but not addressing it is even scarier.
26:37 min