Cognitive rationality is heritable and lies under general cognitive ability

Timothy C. Bates

Intelligence, 2025, vol. 108, issue C

Abstract: Intelligence and rationality both predict optimal decision making. However, whether cognitive rationality (CR) and general cognitive ability (CA) are identical or reflect fundamentally distinct processes is hotly debated. Here, we report a twin study aimed at distinguishing the cognitive mechanisms involved in CR and CA. CR and CA tests were administered to a large twin sample. Univariate analyses indicated that both CA and CR were strongly heritable. Multivariate modelling of CA scales and CR indicated that CR was accounted for by a latent g-factor, which itself was strongly heritable. We conclude that CR is not a distinct disposition from CA, but instead that the reflexive and reflective aspects of cognitive ability make making CR a robust and efficient test of general cognitive ability.

Keywords: Cognitive rationality; Cognitive rationality test; Heritable; General cognitive ability; Intelligence; Genetics (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160289624000898
Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:intell:v:108:y:2025:i:c:s0160289624000898

DOI: 10.1016/j.intell.2024.101895

Access Statistics for this article

Intelligence is currently edited by R.J. Haier

More articles in Intelligence from Elsevier
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Catherine Liu ().