Crystallized Intelligence and Eulogy Virtues

I want to talk about two areas this time that fit well together. How our intelligence can change with age and how there is a greater need to focus on Eulogy Virtues.

There are some who think our brains are in decline as we age. I’m more of a believer of whether you think it is, or not, you are right.

Looking to history, Both Charles Darwin and Johann Sebastian Bach were highly gifted but as they reached midlife, Darwin became depressed after hitting a wall in his research and fell into inactivity, whereas Bach reinvented himself from a composer to a master instructor.

This ties in nicely with two different types of intelligence.

Raymond B Catell (1963) developed the theory of fluid v crystallized intelligence as two categories of general intelligence and explained this in depth in his book ‘Intelligence, its Structure, Growth, and Action’ published in 1987.

Fluid intelligence

Fluid intelligence is the capacity to think speedily and reason flexibly in order to solve new problems without relying on past experience and accumulated knowledge. It is correlated with a number of important skills such as comprehension, problem solving, and learning. High fluid intelligence can often be found in fields such as theoretical physics and pure maths.

Fluid intelligence is a capacity to ‘perceive relationships independent of previous specific practice or instruction related to those relationships’ (Catell, 1967). It helps us to see patterns and solve problems and peaks in our 30s before heading into decline, although the actual age of decline is subject to debate and now could be seen to peak around the age of 40.

Fluid intelligence is a predictor of a person’s capacity to work well in environments characterised by complexity, uncertainty, and ambiguity. This creative intelligence is useful for entrepreneurs and could be a reason why so many tech entrepreneurs reach success in their 20s.

As we age our level of fluid intelligence will drop; instead, we move to crystallized intelligence.

Crystallized Intelligence

Crystallized intelligence is the ability to utilize skills and knowledge acquired via prior learning (Horn, 1969).

It is based on accumulated knowledge and is linked to education and experience including skills learned.

As we age and accumulate new knowledge and understanding, crystallized intelligence becomes stronger. Disciplines such as history and philosophy fit well with this.

This intelligence rises through adulthood and declines much later in life. It’s peak is not yet clear, but likely to be around the age of 60 or 70 (Desjardins, Warnke & Jonas, 2012).

Being a life-long learning will increase and improve our crystallized intelligence through gaining knowledge and experience. The more accumulated knowledge we have, the more crystallized intelligence we will possess.

Life-long learning doesn’t have to be formal learning, but it is around remaining curious and seeking to learn and understand more. I think most of us who write and read on Substack fall into this category.

Crystallized intelligence will help us move towards the role of wise elder, with wisdom to share. It’s an important life stage to move beyond the striving for career success (and how exhausting is that!) to a new stage where we can learn and share and focus on what is truly important.

And this brings me to resume and eulogy virtues, and what is important to us.

Resume and Eulogy Virtues

I first came across these contrasting virtues in an article about David Brooks book – The Road to Character. Resume virtues are valued in the workplace. These are our professional and educational achievements that we put on our CV and lead to career success. 

Eulogy virtues are aspects of our character such as kindness and bravery. This is how we will be described at our funeral.

David Brooks says that we know that Eulogy virtues matter more, but we focus on the former.

This is understandable. Whilst there are some people, for whom their work is a calling and their focus is on more than the self, for most of us as we start on our career path, we generally will focus on career success and getting the next promotion. And then at some stage we realise there is more to life than our work.

With eulogy virtues our focus is on other people. Being of help. Showing kindness, being generous of spirit. As we review our life with age, some will realise that their focus was on their career, and sometimes at the expense of relationships. There is then the wakeup call to focus more on inner character.

Brooks says:

"Moral improvement occurs most reliably when the heart is warmed, when we come into contact with people we admire and love and we consciously and unconsciously bend our lives to mimic theirs'.

A wonderful aspect of ageing is that we want to improve, we want to be of service, and we want to be around people that demonstrate love and understanding so that we can learn from them.

Our focus on Crystallized intelligence and wisdom can show that our focus on our career was not the most important part of our legacy. It is the person who shows up to the world. We therefore focus more on the personal traits that form our eulogy.

What do you think about the move to teaching and sharing knowledge rather than striving for career success? What are your thoughts on Eulogy virtues. Have you noticed changes within you? I’d love us to have a conversation here.