Crystallized intelligence tends to improve or remain stable with age, as individuals accumulate more knowledge and experience throughout their lives. It contrasts with fluid intelligence, which refers to the capacity to think logically and solve new problems without relying on prior knowledge.
Factors contributing to crystallized intelligence include:
Crystallized intelligence plays a crucial role in everyday tasks and interactions, allowing individuals to apply their knowledge effectively in various contexts.
The concepts of fluid intelligence (gf) and crystallized intelligence (gc) were introduced in 1943 by the psychologist Raymond Cattell. According to Cattell's psychometrically-based theory, general intelligence (g) is subdivided into gf and gc. Fluid intelligence is the ability to solve novel reasoning problems and is correlated with a number of important skills such as comprehension, problem-solving, and learning. Crystallized intelligence, on the other hand, involves the ability to deduce secondary relational abstractions by applying previously learned primary relational abstractions.