Expanding the frontier of human cognitive abilities:: so much more than (plain) g!

Commentators have argued that general intelligence (or g) is the most important predictor of occupational, educational, and (even) life success (e.g., The g factor by Jensen). Studies implementing advances in information technology, statistical analysis, and emergent scientific trends suggest that the concept of g is not as efficacious as its proponents indicate. Findings moving us beyond g are presently reviewed, including extensions of traditional, structural models of intelligence. Moreover, above g there appear factors, both cognitive and noncognitive, that support intelligent behavior. A range of these constructs, including conceptual models of emotional intelligence (EI), tacit knowledge, and metacognition, are discussed. While these models have problems, there appears much more scope to intelligence research (with all its implications to applied domains) than the restricted perspective offered by proponents of general intelligence. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.