1st Edition

An Analysis of Richard J. Herrnstein and Charles Murray's The Bell Curve Intelligence and Class Structure in American Life

By Christine Ma, Michael Schapira Copyright 2017
    112 Pages
    by Macat Library

    112 Pages
    by Macat Library

    Herrnstein & Murray's The Bell Curve is a deeply controversial text that raises serious issues about the stakes involved in reasoning and interpretation.

    The authors’ central contention is that intelligence is the primary factor determining social outcomes for individuals – and that it is a better predictor of achievement than income, background or socioeconomic status. One of the major issues raised by the book was its discussion of 'racial differences in intelligence,' and its contention that there is a link between the low observed test scores and social outcomes for African-Americans and their lack of social attainment.

    While the authors produce and interpret a great deal of data to back up their contentions, they ultimately fail to tackle the problem that neither 'intelligence' nor 'race' have widely accepted definitions in biology, anthropology or sociology. In consequence, the book has been termed both ‘racist’ and ‘pseudoscientific’ thanks to what its critics see as both its faulty reasoning and its uncautious interpretation of evidence. The debate continues to this day, with academics on both sides engaged in fierce arguments over what can be argued from the data that Herrnstein and Murray used.

    Ways in to the Text 

    Who were Herrnstein and Murray? 

    What does The Bell Curve: Intelligence and Class Structure in American Life Say? 

    Why does The Bell Curve: Intelligence and Class Structure in American Life Matter? 

    Section 1: Influences 

    Module 1: The Author and the Historical Context 

    Module 2: Academic Context 

    Module 3: The Problem 

    Module 4: The Author's Contribution 

    Section 2: Ideas 

    Module 5: Main Ideas 

    Module 6: Secondary Ideas 

    Module 7: Achievement 

    Module 8: Place in the Author's Work 

    Section 3: Impact 

    Module 9: The First Responses 

    Module 10: The Evolving Debate 

    Module 11: Impact and Influence Today 

    Module 12: Where Next? 

    Glossary of Terms 

    People Mentioned in the Text 

    Works Cited

    Biography

    Dr Christine Ma received her Ph.D. in Social Psychology from the University of California, Santa Barbara in 2011. She was then a postdoctoral fellow at Harvard University in the Psychology Department and the Harvard Kennedy School. She is currently an Assistant Professor of psychology at the Univeristy of Laverne, California.

    Michael Schapira is an associate professor at the The School of Computer Science and Engineering, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.