1. Factors = abilities Where does the equality come from, what does it mean?

2. The creation of factors Take a lot of people Make them do a lot of tasks Measure their performances Load performances into a stats program Use a stats procedure examine all the variation in performance across tasks, and see if you can describe this variation in terms of fewer variables, known as factors, thus...

3. So fewer variables explain variation in the greater number... Task 1 performance variation Task 2 performance variation Task 3 performance variation Task 4 performance variation Factor 1Factor 2.6.7.5.8.6 Three tasks load on factor 2 Two tasks load on factor 2

4. But where do these factors come from? Abilities research: – These are psychological traits delivering potential to develop skill – As such they exist prior to the skills themselves (note the research has no evidence for this, as the data is collected all at one time) – Hypothetical constructs – Not parsimonious – Occam’s Razor is blunted

5. What if.... Catching Hitting a baseball Hitting a shuttlecock Throwing Factor 1?Factor 2?.6.5.8.6.7

6. What if.... Catching Hitting a baseball Hitting a shuttlecock Throwing Factor 1?Factor 2?.6.5.8.6.7 Abilities research would say: the people who develop these skills (1 through 4) have the abilities necessary to do so. Note that the data supports this (is consistent with it) 1 2 3 4

7. But can we come up with another explanation? Catching Hitting a baseball Hitting a shuttlecock Throwing Factor 1?Factor 2?.6.5.8.6.7 What could factor 1 be? Something that is directly observable, not some “hypothetical construct” One the doesn’t rely on abilities?

8. Catching Hitting a baseball Hitting a shuttlecock Throwing Factor 1?Factor 2?.6.5.8.6.7 What could factor 2 be? Something that is directly observable, not some “hypothetical construct” But can we come up with another explanation? One the doesn’t rely on abilities?