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Updated: Dec 25, 2025

An Operant Intra-/Extra-dimensional Set-shift Task for Mice
Published on: January 22, 2016
The transition of object to mental manipulation: beyond a species-specific view of intelligence
Moran Bar-Hen-Schweiger1, Avishai Henik2
1Department of Psychology, and Zlotowski Center for Neuroscience, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, P.O.B. 653, Beer Sheva, Israel. moranbar@post.bgu.ac.il.
Abstract:
Many attempts have been made to classify and evaluate the nature of intelligence in humans and other species (referred to as the 'g' factor in the former and the G factor in the latter). The search for this essential structure of mental life has generated various models and definitions, yet open questions remain. Specifically, referring to intelligence by overemphasizing the anthropocentric terminology and its ethnocentric overlay is insufficient to account for individual differences and limits its generalizability in biological and cultural contexts. The present work is an attempt to adopt a different perspective on the 'g/G' factor and its measurement. We suggest that intelligence, or g/G, is reflected in a biological capacity that evolved from object manipulation in animals, into mental manipulation in humans, in response to various environmental conditions.
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