Robert Sternberg (b. 1949) Steinberg first became interested in studying intelligence after he did poorly on a sixth-grade intelligence test. He later realized that test anxiety had interfered with his performance. Throughout his college years, Sternberg did poorly in courses that required rote learning—including his first psychology course at Yale. However, Sternberg persevered. He went on to win many awards for his research and, in 2003, was elected president of the American Psychological Association. Much of Sternberg’s career has been devoted to studying nontraditional types of intelligence, such as creativity and wisdom, and developing new ways to measure these qualities (Kaufman & others, 2009; Sternberg, 2014a).

Courtesy Robert Sternberg/Tufts University