INTELLIGENCE, ELEMENTARY COGNITIVE COMPONENTS, AND COGNITIVE STYLES AS PREDICTORS OF COMPLEX TASK-PERFORMANCE

A laboratory study is reported in which individual differences underly ing variations in the performance of a complex task are examined. Diff erences in fluid intelligence, elementary cognitive components (proces sing speed and working memory) and cognitive styles (tempo, planfulnes s and complexity) are measured, with a view to comparing between these three types of variable. It is found that fluid intelligence scores a re more closely associated with measures of speed rather than accurate task performance; processing speed and working memory are both predic tive of complex task performance; and differences in self-reported cog nitive tempo co-vary with speed of problem-solving but not with speed of routine activity. In general, the inclusion of cognitive style vari ables does not increase the predictive power of intelligence and the e lementary cognitive components. It is concluded that cognitive styles will be most reflected in task performance when the activities involve d permit considerable variation in the style under investigation. Fina lly, an explanation is offered of why fluid intelligence is more predi ctive of some aspects of complex task performance than others, in term s of their degree of emphasis on speeded cognitive processes. Copyrigh t (C) 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd.