ABSTRACT

L. P. Gardner has suggested, in fact, that intelligence tests do not tap some latent abilities in the mentally defective; that differences in their speed of learning may be due rather to personality factors. Tredgold suggests that imbeciles may be divided into "excitable" and "apathetic" types. The work of Eysenck referred to earlier, provides a possible theoretical basis for explaining the behaviour of subnormal individuals of different personality types in learning situations of this kind. Gardner has suggested, in fact, that intelligence tests do not tap some latent abilities in the mentally defective; that differences in their speed of learning may be due rather to personality factors. Eysenck's suggestion is that extraverts and introverts differ in respect of their position on a continuum of excitability-inhibitability, extraverts showing a predominance of inhibitory potential, and therefore conditioning slowly, introverts showing a predominance of excitatory potential, and therefore conditioning quickly.