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Arthur R. Jensen. The g Factor The Science of Mental Ability. Westport, CT.: Praeger, 1998, 664 pages, $39.95.
Reviewed by Robert J. Steinberg,1 IBM Professor of Psychology and Education, Yale University, New Haven, CT:
Even those who disagree with most of what Arthur Jensen says in The g Factor, such as myself, have to admire the sheer dedication, pertinacity, and tireless scholarship that must have gone into a work of this scope. In 664 pages, Jensen reviews much of the literature pertaining to Spearman's (1904) idea of a general factor of intelligence, and concludes that the idea is valid. The conclusion is impressive: How many other ideas from the turn of the century still excite the interest of so many psychologists today, let alone their support?
Jensen's magnum opus comprises 14 chapters and two appendixes. The chapters cover a variety of issues dealing with the general factor: the theory, a history of some research, challenges to the model, biological correlates, heritability, information processing, practical validity, population differences, sex differences, and other topics. Where does it all end? According to Jensen, "The g factor derives its broad significance from the fact that it is causally related to many real-life conditions, both personal and social.... Since its discovery by Spearman in 1904, the g factor has become firmly established as a major psychological construct. Further psychometric and factor analytic research is unlikely either to disconfirm the construct validity or predictive validity of g, or to add anything essentially new to our understanding." Jensen suggests that to the extent we do further research, perhaps it needs to emphasize the neurophysiological basis of g.
Jensen does in this book what he has done in his others. Like other committed g theorists, he creates an internally coherent system by carefully focusing and narrowing the world of ideas he is willing to explore. Within this smallish world, his conclusions hold together. Outside that world, they fall apart. All scientists have to focus and channel their energies. In this respect, Jensen is no exception. The problem is that, here, this focusing and channeling result in conclusions that will convince the converted and probably few others.
How can a 664-page tome be narrow? It is not hard. One merely has to ignore or...