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Abstract

James McKeen Cattell's contributions to the development of psychology have been well recognized. His earliest efforts in experimental psychology, however, were regarded by himself and others as unsuccessful. Following in the tradition of his mentors, Wundt and Galton, Cattell tried to demonstrate that psychophysiological measures could be related to general intelligence and achievement, but unsatisfactory results from Clark Wissler's (1901) dissertation combined with the wide acceptance of Alfred Binet's model of measuring intelligence led him to abandon his research and devote his considerable energies to other professional endeavors. Contemporary researchers have recently revived the basic research paradigm that Cattell was using, and considerable support has been found for the hypothesis that individual differences in elementary cognitive tasks are related to general intelligence. It is possible that intelligence theories of the future may owe as much to the Galtonian model of intelligence and its adherents like Cattell as they owe to Binet.

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Reaction Time and Intelligence

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