Genius

Definitions

Francis Galton may have been the first to give genius one of its contemporary meanings in his classic 1869 work Hereditary Genius. Galton's work emphasized the idea that genius is defined in relation to reputation or eminence (subject to revision over time). This definition of genius keys on actual accomplishments that are valued and preserved within a given cultural tradition and within a given field of endeavor. Galton's studies showed that eminence tended to be achieved within family traditions and interpreted this observation to mean that the potential for genius is largely inherited, a quality closely linked to the second most prominent meaning of the term.

Following Galton's work by several decades and greatly influenced by it, pioneers in the field of gifted education Lewis Terman and Leta Hollingworth shifted focus from achievement of eminence to the presumed potential for great achievement that was believed to be reflected in a child's IQ. A score sufficiently beyond the average was taken to be a reliable indicator of genius potential. Just how far above average varied from researcher to researcher (e.g., Terman thought that [Page 376]IQ 140 or higher was the right place to set the mark, but Hollingworth thought IQ 160 was more accurate). Variations in which IQ test was used and on what scale it was standardized added to the lack of consensus about what IQ score to use as a cutoff for genius. In practice in the field of gifted education, Terman's mark of IQ above 140 has tended to be the standard.

A classic large study by Terman's associate Catharine Cox attempted to provide scientific support for the idea of IQ-based genius. Cox estimated the childhood IQ scores (as well as the scores in early adulthood) of more than 250 “geniuses” from Western culture. The methods used were largely based on anecdotal records and biographical and autobiographical reports. As biologist Stephen Jay Gould recently pointed out, the methodological issues in this study were legion, casting major doubt on the value of the IQ estimates. For example, cases where little was known, especially those from poor families, received lower IQ scores because the written record of their accomplishments was so meager. Nonetheless, the study was highly influential and is still often cited.

Dean Keith Simonton suggests four advantages of the eminence definition of genius over the IQ based one: it rests on actual accomplishment; it is closer to what most people mean when they use the word genius; it suggests a special and rare quality that current usage includes; and finally, because eminence is subject to revision, there are ways of assessing degrees of genius. To be sure, there are drawbacks to the eminence definition as well. It may be mistaken or imprecise; it is subject to fads and trends that may be short lived; it initially depends on the judgments of peers who may not be unbiased in their views; and it diminished the notion of a general genius mind in the sense that Samuel Johnson meant when he wrote that “the true Genius is a mind of general powers, accidentally determined to some particular direction” (quoted in Simonton, 2003, p. 3). The eminence definition tends to be more specific to the field in which genius manifests itself; the IQ definition tends to emphasize the protean and all encompassing power of a genius mind.

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