Intelligence is defined as the capacity to know and understand, or simply, intellect. This definition is a standard that is universally applied to all cultures. However, every society’s perception of intelligence is extraordinarily different. Nancy Frazier (1973) suggests that the true American definition of intelligence is a male norm, meaning mathematical and spatial abilities are considered the best representation of intelligence. This type of intelligence is seen in business, science and technology. Yet, in truth, Frazier explains that intelligence encompasses far more than the ability to reason; the socia

The last factor that forces genders into certain roles is peers. The National Bureau of Economic Research (1996) experimented on male delinquency and found that in both males and females the actions and thoughts of the sexes were largely based on labeling. Labeling is the process of identifying one stimulus to another. Peers are the most influential labelers. Labeling intelligence is a common way to evaluate a peer, and that label reflects onto an individual’s self-concept. Generally, peers have evaluated their peer’s intelligence by age 10. Once this label is applied, the individual has a difficult time changing their peer’s mind. This process is extremely detrimental to students who are perceived as less than adequate (Brown 1996). Sandra Bem found that children whose peers view them as unintelligent will believe this label after only one year of receiving it. This means that students will often stop trying in school and fail on the result of the thought that they are slow, rather than because of an actual lack of intelligence. Labeling is a dangerous trend in adolescence that can only be helped through the actions of teachers and family. She suggests constant attention to a child’s mood and attitude toward his or her work. If either teachers or parents notice a change, they must decipher why. Reinforcement on the positive aspects of the particular child is the only way the child can dismiss other’s labels (1993).

R. Sternberg (2002) found that the self is a reflected appraisal and an object formed from the standpoint of others. The self therefore, is linked to social structure through peers and communication with others. They found that all children receive labels, either negative or positive. Surprisingly, they also found that the student’s teachers also believe these labels. Teachers are therefore just as responsible as their students for a child’s lack of confidence. In these cases, only the parents can help change the negative label. They must keep active communication with the teacher so that they can judge whether the teacher’s labels are negatively affecting the child. If this proves to be true, that child must be pulled from the class and placed in a positive atmosphere where they can learn without the negative stigma giving by the classroom. This process of labeling profoundly effects individual’s self-concept (Sternberg 2002).

A similar study conducted by Robert Zemsky (2001) developed the same conclusions. Through experimenting on delinquency among adolescences, they found that gender roles force a particular self-concept upon a child. For females, emotional relationships are viewed as most important, and those who stray away from this norm are viewed as atypical. Males are taught toughness and skill, and any variance from this norm is seen as an imperfection. Zemsky (2000) therefore concluded that the female self-concept is heavily influenced by how she perceives others view her, due to the emphasis on relationships, and the male self-concept is more autonomous of the appraisal of others, specifically the appraisal of skills. However, Marsha Obringer found that males are much more concerned with their image as a man when they are young, and when perceived as weak they will develop a negative self-concept about both their image and intelligence (Obringer 1995). Therefore, both are subject to dangerous self-concepts due to the thoughts of others.

Unfortunately, many children who have these gifts don’t generally receive much reinforcement for them in school. Many of these kids, in fact, end up being labeled “learning disabled,” “ADD” (attention deficit disorder), or simply underachievers, when their unique ways of thinking and learning are not addressed by a heavily linguistic or logical-mathematical classroom. The theory of multiple intelligences proposes a major transformation in the way America’s schools are run. It suggests that teachers be trained to present their

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