What Is Intelligence?

James R. Flynn addresses the paradox of the Flynn effect, the documented rise in average IQ scores across the twentieth century. He argues that these gains do not reflect an increase in innate brain power, but rather a shift toward scientific spectacles and abstract thinking. Using the concept of cognitive history, Flynn illustrates how industrialization and formal schooling taught modern humans to categorize the world through logic rather than direct utility. The text evaluates the difference between physiological brain capacity and the cultural tools that allow us to solve complex problems, while critiquing alternative models like Howard Gardner’s multiple intelligences.

Psychologists, sociologists, and educators read this book to understand why standardized testing results fluctuate across generations. The reader learns to distinguish between biological intelligence and the functional cognitive skills demanded by modern environments. By the end, one understands how social shifts influence the way humans process information and why our ancestors prioritized practical knowledge over the formal abstractions measured by modern intelligence assessments.

Deep; a moderate read.

Best for readers like The Deep Diver. Which reader are you?