Chapter 24
Intelligence, Reasoning, and Decision Making
High emotional intelligence (EI) is linked to better decision making, empathy, resilience, and leadership. Metacognition – the ability to think about one’s own thinking – allows humans to monitor their performance, recognize errors, and adjust strategies so that we can learn from our experiences (errors). Motivation and persistence (personality factors) sustain efforts toward cognitively demanding tasks. Openness to experience correlates strongly with intellectual curiosity and lifetime learning.
Two core aspects of
intelligence are Reasoning and Problem Solving. Although
they are closely related - and often overlap - they are not synonymous. They
represent different levels and purposes of cognition. Reasoning is the process
of drawing logical inferences, evaluating evidence, and forming conclusions
from given information. Its primary focus is thinking accurately within a known
framework. Think of the chess player who uses reasoning to evaluate moves (e.g., if I do X, the opponent does Y). In contrast, problem-solving is the cognitive process
of finding a way to reach a goal when the path or solution is not immediately
obvious. Its focus is on finding or creating solutions when the answer is unknown.
Reasoning is a component of problem solving. When you solve a problem, you
often reason through multiple possibilities - but problem solving also requires
goal representation, planning, monitoring, and sometimes creative leaps beyond
logic.
We should also note that while intelligence refers to our cognitive capacities, reasoning refers to how we use those capacities. Highly intelligent people sometimes reason poorly, while individuals of more modest intellectual ability often reason exceptionally well because they think carefully, question assumptions, and remain open to evidence.
Decision-making often - but not always - precedes our actions. However, this capacity is
fraught with errors. Here are a few examples. Our tendency for Loss Aversion
leads to inaction when action is required or to action when restraint would be
better. Groupthink describes the social pressure to conform within
cohesive groups, leading to collective blindness and moral disengagement.
Finally, overconfidence bias and confirmation bias often lead to
poor decisions. These are some of the cognitive biases we examined in Chapter
13. With the brain’s working memory capacity to only hold roughly four chunks
of information at once, complex thoughts easily overwhelm mental resources.
Excess information impairs learning and reasoning, forcing reliance on
simplifications that distort reality.
Furthermore, research suggests that the smarter you are, the more you are
likely to rationalize preexisting (often wrong) beliefs. This trap is called motivated
reasoning.
Let’s consider the physiology of our brains. Neuroscience shows that intelligence is rooted in the efficiency, connectivity, and adaptability of the brain. Higher intelligence is associated with more effective communication between the prefrontal cortex (responsible for executive control) and parietal regions (involved in spatial and quantitative reasoning). Additionally, intelligence correlates with neural efficiency – more intelligent individuals use less energy to perform cognitive tasks, indicating more optimized processing. The source of our intelligence? Genetics, yes. But nutrition, education, and social context also have a profound impact on our ability to reach our mental potential. Early stimulation and parental interaction enhance cognitive networks. A steady, global rise in IQ scores throughout the 20th century suggests that societal improvements in education, nutrition, and cognitive stimulation have had beneficial effects.
On the negative side, chronic stress, malnutrition, and exposure to toxins can impair growth in areas of the brain critical for learning and memory. Under pressure (stress), our prefrontal cortex - responsible for planning and cognitive control – yields to the limbic system, which prioritizes rapid emotional responses. Thus, a system developed to protect us from onrushing rhinos sabotages our rational capacities in a critical business meeting. People’s System 1 thinking (fast, intuitive, and emotional) overwhelms their System 2 thinking (slower and more analytical). Neuroscience points to a source for these problems. The amygdala and limbic systems evolved before the prefrontal cortex. While optimally we find a balance between intuition (the former) and logic (the latter), in the heat of the battle, we often fail.
Given the challenges of today’s hectic world, we can’t help
but ask the question - are we doomed? Time will tell. But Chapter 70 suggests
balancing factors and actions we can use for the sake of our survival – as individuals
and as a species.
For our next chapter, let’s delve into an aspect of intelligence that can brings joy to our often pedestrian lives – Creativity.