ABSTRACT
At the centre of this latest furore is the role of theory. But even here we must move with caution because in this field the notion of theory entails at least two entirely different ideas. As Peter Gill has pointed out, we need to distinguish between theories about intelligence and theories for intelligence practitioners3 – although the latter of these is probably better known as the theory of intelligence. As I shall endeavour to show, both theories of and about intelligence experience serious risks and pitfalls, albeit of profoundly different kinds and with equally different consequences.
