Chess and Individual Differences

Description

Research from the neurosciences and behavioural sciences highlights the importance of individual differences in explaining human behaviour. Individual differences in core psychological constructs, such as intelligence or personality, account for meaningful variations in a vast range of responses and behaviours. Aspects of chess have been increasingly used in the past to evaluate a myriad of psychological theories, and several of these studies consider individual differences to be key constructs in their respective fields. This book summarizes the research surrounding the psychology of chess from an individual- differences perspective. The findings accumulated from nearly forty years' worth of research about chess and individual differences are brought together to show what is known - and still unknown - about the psychology of chess, with an emphasis on how people differ from one another. Cover Half-title page Title page Copyright page Contents List of Figures List of Tables Preface Acknowledgements 1 Introduction 1.1 A Very Brief Opening to the Game of Chess 1.2 Overview of This Book 2 Quantifying Chess Skill 2.1 Elo Rating Lists 2.2 Updating Mechanism and Basic Statistics of the Elo Rating 2.3 Alternatives to the Elo Rating of Chess Players 2.4 Overview of Studies Using the Elo Rating 3 Cognition 3.1 Perception 3.2 Memory 3.3 Thinking 4 Individual Differences 4.1 Characterization and Appraisal of Individual Differences 4.2 Individual Differences in Chess 4.3 Heredity versus Environment 5 Psychophysiology and Brain Functioning 5.1 Psychophysiology and Chess 5.2 Brain Basics 5.3 Electroencephalography (EEG) 5.4 Overview of Brain-Imaging Studies 5.5 Cerebral Cortex Areas 5.6 Hemispheric Specialization 5.7 Other Brain Areas and Anatomical Changes 5.8 Summarizing Findings about Brain Functioning and Chess 6 Intelligence 6.1 Approaches to the Study of Intelligence 6.2 Individual Differences in Intelligence and Chess 6.3 Intelligence and Chess in Children 6.4 Intelligence and Chess in Adults 6.5 Summarizing Findings about Intelligence in Chess 6.6 Chess Skill versus Chess Motivation in Predicting Chess Performance 7 Personality 7.1 Approaches to the Study of Personality 7.2 Personality and Chess-Playing Style 7.3 Personality Factors Studied with Chess Players 7.4 Personality, Motivation, Emotional Regulation, and Chess Knowledge 8 Expertise 8.1 The Role of Practice 8.2 Talent versus Practice 8.3 Cognitive Decline in Chess 9 Sex Differences 9.1 Sex Differences in Intelligence and Personality 9.2 Sex Differences in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) 9.3 Sex Differences in Participation Rates in Chess 9.4 Sex Differences in Chess Playing 9.5 Sex Differences in Chess Performance at Different Levels of Practice 10 Applications 10.1 Business 10.2 Health 10.3 Education and School 10.4 Transfer 10.5 Statistical Power 11 Concluding Remarks Appendix 1 Appendix 2 Appendix 3 Appendix 4 Glossary References Index