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Human Cognitive Abilities: A Survey of Factor-Analytic Studies
Abstract
This 1993 work surveys and summarizes the results of more than seventy years of investigation, by factor analysis, of a variety of cognitive abilities, with particular attention to language, thinking, memory, visual and auditory perception, creativity and the production of ideas, and the speed and accuracy of mental processing. The author describes his detailed findings resulting from reanalysis of more than 460 data sets from the factor-analytic literature, followed by a presentation of a hierarchical, three-stratum theory of cognitive ability and its implications for further research. A set of three computer disks (IBM 3-1/2" 1.4 megabytes, ASCII format) containing the numerical data sets and Dr. Carroll's statistical results is also available. Representing over 4 megabytes of data or roughly 2000 printed pages the disks are major resources for the interested researcher.
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In the citing paper
“Any cognitive testing was assessed in terms of its true cognitive ability, as described by Carroll (1993) [24].”
From Systematic Overview of Bacopa monnieri (L.) Wettst. Dominant Poly-Herbal Formulas in Children and Adolescents (2017) · cites this paper as [24]
In the citing paper
“the variance common across cognitive tasks can be modeled as a latent factor denoted as g (the general factor of intelligence) 9,10”
From Genome-wide association meta-analysis in 269,867 individuals identifies new genetic and functional links to intelligence (2018) · cites this paper as [9]
In the citing paper
“Furthermore, the present results are consistent with Carroll's (1993) assertion that CHC theory is a universal theory of intelligence and applicable to different gender and ethnic groups.”
From Is the Cattell–Horn–Carroll-based factor structure of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Fifth Edition (WISC-V) construct invariant for a representative sample of African–American, Hispanic, and Caucasian male and female students ages 6 to 16 years? (2016) · cites this paper as Carroll's (1993)
In the citing paper
“Carroll (1962Carroll ( , 1981Carroll ( , 1990Carroll ( , 1993) ) conceptualized the FL aptitude construct as comprising four distinct and measurable abilities: PHONETIC CODING ABILITY, GRAMMATICAL SENSITIVITY, INDUCTIVE LANGUAGE LEARNING ABILITY and ASSOCIATIVE MEMORY”
From Foreign language aptitude theory: Yesterday, today and tomorrow (2017) · cites this paper as Carroll 1993
In the citing paper
“To begin with, 'FL aptitude' should be considered an umbrella term consisting of a set of COGNITIVE abilities, thus making it a COMPONENTIAL concept (Carroll 1981(Carroll , 1993;;Skehan 1998;Sparks et al. 2011).”
From Foreign language aptitude theory: Yesterday, today and tomorrow (2017) · cites this paper as Carroll 1993
In the citing paper
“John Carroll (1993), clearly differentiated the terms 'ability', 'aptitude' and 'achievement'.”
From Foreign language aptitude theory: Yesterday, today and tomorrow (2017) · cites this paper as Carroll 1993
In the citing paper
“However, it slightly differs from Skehan's approach in that it tries to provide a finer-grained representation of the complex structure of human cognitive abilities (Carroll 1993) and also makes clearer reference to specific educational contexts.”
From Foreign language aptitude theory: Yesterday, today and tomorrow (2017) · cites this paper as Carroll 1993
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Gs Invaders: Assessing a computer game-like test of processing speed
McPherson, J., & Burns, N. R. (2007) · Behavior Research Methods · doi:10.3758/bf03192982 · Cited by 43
Construct Validity of the WISC–IVUKWith a Large Referred Irish Sample
Watkins, M. W., Canivez, G. L., James, T., James, K., & Good, R. (2013) · International Journal of School & Educational Psychology · doi:10.1080/21683603.2013.794439 · Cited by 43
Secular gains in fluid intelligence: Evidence from the culture-fair intelligence test
COLOM, R., & GARCÍA-LÓPEZ, O. (2003) · Journal of Biosocial Science · doi:10.1017/s0021932003000336 · Cited by 42
“The analytical measure used is considered the best representation of fluid intelligence, and fluid intelligence is the first ingredient of general intelligence (Carroll, 1993).”
MethodCassinadri, G. (2024) · Philosophy & Technology · doi:10.1007/s13347-024-00701-7 · Cited by 54
Structural Validity of the WISC-IV for Students With Learning Disabilities
Styck, K. M., & Watkins, M. W. (2016) · Journal of Learning Disabilities · doi:10.1177/0022219414539565 · Cited by 40
Examination of the Underlying Structure of the NEPSY: A Developmental Neuropsychological Assessment
Stinnett, T. A., Oehler-Stinnett, J., Fuqua, D. R., & Palmer, L. S. (2002) · Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment · doi:10.1177/073428290202000105 · Cited by 39
Exploiting human anatomical variability as a link between genome and cognome
Leonard, C. M., Eckert, M. A., & Kuldau, J. M. (2006) · Genes, Brain and Behavior · doi:10.1111/j.1601-183x.2006.00196.x · Cited by 38
Canivez, G. L., Watkins, M. W., James, T., Good, R., & James, K. (2014) · British Journal of Educational Psychology · doi:10.1111/bjep.12056 · Cited by 38
Boschi, A., Planche, P., Hemimou, C., Demily, C., & Vaivre-Douret, L. (2016) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01605 · Cited by 34
Buczylowska, D., & Petermann, F. (2016) · Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology · doi:10.1093/arclin/acw005 · Cited by 34
Role of Verbal Working Memory in Complex Skill Acquisition
Perlow, R., Jattuso, M., & De Wayne Moore, D. (1997) · Human Performance · doi:10.1207/s15327043hup1003_4 · Cited by 33
Examining Individual Differences in Language Learning: A Neurocognitive Model of Language Aptitude
Turker, S., Seither-Preisler, A., & Reiterer, S. M. (2021) · Neurobiology of Language · doi:10.1162/nol_a_00042 · Cited by 33
Canivez, G. L., Dombrowski, S. C., & Watkins, M. W. (2018) · Psychology in the Schools · doi:10.1002/pits.22138 · Cited by 30
Kean, J., Downey, L., & Stough, C. (2017) · Medicines · doi:10.3390/medicines4040086 · Cited by 31
Plantinga on functions and the theory of evolution
Levin, M. (1997) · Australasian Journal of Philosophy · doi:10.1080/00048409712347691 · Cited by 29
Bowden, S. C., Gregg, N., Bandalos, D., Davis, M., Coleman, C., Holdnack, J. A., & Weiss, L. G. (2008) · Educational and Psychological Measurement · doi:10.1177/0013164407310126 · Cited by 26
Scheiber, C. (2016) · Journal of Pediatric Neuropsychology · doi:10.1007/s40817-016-0019-7 · Cited by 25
Neurocognition in children with cognitive disengagement syndrome: accurate but slow
Tamm, L., Epstein, J. N., Orban, S. A., Kofler, M. J., Peugh, J. L., & Becker, S. P. (2024) · Child Neuropsychology · doi:10.1080/09297049.2023.2185215 · Cited by 25
Sex/Gender Differences in General Cognitive Abilities: An Investigation Using the Leiter-3
Giofrè, D., Toffalini, E., Esposito, L., & Cornoldi, C. (2024) · Cognitive Processing · doi:10.1007/s10339-024-01199-9 · Cited by 24
Dreszer, J., Grochowski, M., Lewandowska, M., Nikadon, J., Gorgol, J., Bałaj, B., Finc, K., Duch, W., Kałamała, P., Chuderski, A., et al. (2020) · Human Brain Mapping · doi:10.1002/hbm.25162 · Cited by 23
Issues Arising from the Long-Term Evaluation of Cognitive Acceleration Programs
Adey, P. (2005) · Research in Science Education · doi:10.1007/s11165-004-3430-5 · Cited by 23
Interest–Ability Profiles: An Integrative Approach to Knowledge Acquisition
Hyland, W. E., Hoff, K. A., & Rounds, J. (2022) · Journal of Intelligence · doi:10.3390/jintelligence10030043 · Cited by 21
Edelsbrunner, P. A., Malone, S., Hofer, S. I., Küchemann, S., Kuhn, J., Schmid, R., Altmeyer, K., Brünken, R., & Lichtenberger, A. (2023) · International Journal of STEM Education · doi:10.1186/s40594-023-00435-6 · Cited by 19
Fasoli, M. (2018) · Minds and Machines · doi:10.1007/s11023-018-9476-3 · Cited by 19
“…a person engages, given an appropriate setting, in order to achieve a specifiable class of objectives, final results, or terminal states of affairs” (Carroll 1993, p. 8), defined a cognitive task as “any task in which correct or appropriate processing of mental information is critical to…”
InfluentialDemetriou, A., & Spanoudis, G. (2017) · Journal of Intelligence · doi:10.3390/jintelligence5030030 · Cited by 17
Roque-Gutierrez, E., & Ibbotson, P. (2023) · Journal of Experimental Child Psychology · doi:10.1016/j.jecp.2022.105593 · Cited by 11
Military enlistment selection and classification: Moving forward
Rumsey, M. G., & Arabian, J. M. (2014) · Military Psychology · doi:10.1037/mil0000040 · Cited by 7
Curry, D. S. (2021) · Synthese · doi:10.1007/s11229-020-02641-z · Cited by 7
“Despite disagreeing amongst themselves about whether g (Jensen 1999; Gottfredson 2018) or its subcomponents (Horn 1965; Cattell 1971; Carroll 1993) are functionally fundamental, g-centered theorists all agree that intelligence is objective—it is the thing measured by g on a single,…”
BackgroundMcGill, R. J., Dombrowski, S. C., & Canivez, G. L. (2025) · Psychology in the Schools · doi:10.1002/pits.23457 · Cited by 5
Wait, Where’s the Flynn Effect on the WAIS-5?
Winter, E. L., Trudel, S. M., & Kaufman, A. S. (2024) · Journal of Intelligence · doi:10.3390/jintelligence12110118 · Cited by 5
The asymmetry of working memory training transfer: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Fu, J., Zhou, Y., Yuan, M., & Cai, Y. (2026) · Psychonomic Bulletin & Review · doi:10.3758/s13423-026-02994-5
Factors Related to Mean Score Group Differences on Cognitive Ability Tests: A Systematic Review
Cuppello, S., Zibarras, L. D., & Corr, P. J. (2025) · Trends in Psychology · doi:10.1007/s43076-025-00504-5
Metadata
- Authors
- Carroll, J. B.
- Corresponding author
- Carroll, John B.
- Venue
- Cambridge University Press eBooks
- Publisher
- Cambridge University Press
- Published
- 1993-01-29
- OpenAlex
- W2999665664
- Cited by
- 4,121
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 118 · 2025: 135 · 2024: 158 · 2023: 196 · 2022: 169 · 2021: 189 · 2020: 230 · 2019: 187 · 2018: 165 · 2017: 177 · 2016: 172 · 2015: 162 · 2014: 178 · 2013: 151 · 2012: 128
- FWCI
- 41.67
- Type
- book
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Cambridge University Press eBooks (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Cognitive Abilities and Testing
- Social Sciences › Decision Sciences › Management Science and Operations Research › Psychometric Methodologies and Testing
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Creativity in Education and Neuroscience
- Keywords
- cognitive ability, language skills, thinking skills, memory, visual perception, auditory perception, creativity
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