Concrete Operations,'g' And Achievement in Zambian Children

Abstract

A comparison is made between Zambian elementary schoolchildren in the range of "stated ages" 7-17 years who provided evidence of weight conservation behaviour and those who did not do so. The principal dependent variable is performance on locally-developed psychometric measures of reasoning ability, and further data were available in the form of scores on an objectively-marked national Secondary School Selection examination. Very little connection is found between the conservationstatus of the subjects and their performance on these variables, and the implications for a possible rapprochement between psychometric and Piagetian approaches to human intelligence are discussed in the light of cultural factors. An experimental approach to the problem is recommended.

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