The joint influence of intelligence and practice on skill development throughout the life span

Significance What is often overlooked in the nature vs. nurture debate is the fact that both factors interact with each other. This omission is reflected in research where individual factors are examined in isolation. Our study reveals how intelligence and practice, factors typically associated with nature and nurture, respectively, influence the acquisition and retention of complex skills across the whole life span. It confirms one of the central tenets of intelligence theories, widely assumed but rarely empirically proven, namely that more able people benefit more from the same amount of learning activity.