Personal Conceptions of Intelligence: Definition, Differentiation and Emergence as an Organizer and Integrative Model of Other Motivational Constructs

this article, developing the theme of personal conceptions of intelligence, will be approached from the perspective of four main topics: definition and characterization of the concept; development and differentiation; emergence and foundation of personal conceptions of intelligence as an organizer and integrative model of other motivational constructs; and future developments: intercultural studies. thus, we will present the reflections and the results of a series of studies, several of them cross-？sectional and one longitudinal-？sequential, conducted in the portuguese educational context during the past 18 years, which aimed not only to present, define and delimitate the model of personal conceptions of intelligence, but also to apply, develop and transform it, both through the construction of adequate evaluation measures, by studying the specificities of the portuguese cultural context with regard to the expression of differences, and also through the application of these results to other cultural contexts in the scope of intercultural studies.