During recent history, intelligence has been one of the most polemic concepts in psychology. Major controversies in intelligence include the specific contribution of biological and cultural factors to intelligence, the unity or diversity of intelligence, the measure of intelligence, the potential intellectual differences among human groups, the intelligence changes across life span, the potential differences in the patterns of intellectual abilities between men and women, animal intelligence, and artificial intelligence. All these questions remain at least partially controversial. This entry discusses how intelligence is interpreted and measured, the theory of multiple intelligences, intelligence test performance, and a summary of what is known and unknown about intelligence.

The term intelligence derives from the Latin word intelligentia that means comprehend or perceive. This term was widely used ...

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