Robert Serpell

Robert Nicholas Serpell (born 1944 in England) is a Zambian citizen and Professor of Psychology at the University of Zambia. From 2003 to 2006 he was Vice-Chancellor of the University. He also serves as the current Chancellor of Eden University in Lusaka, Zambia.

He has conducted numerous studies on intelligence, literacy and child development in social and cultural context, finding that even within a given society, different cognitive characteristics are emphasized from one situation to another and from one subculture to another. These differences extend not just to conceptions of intelligence but to what is considered adaptive or appropriate in a broader sense. Serpell's work shows how conceptions of intelligence vary from culture to culture, and that the majority of these views do not reflect Western ideas.

Serpell and colleagues discovered that people in some African cultures, particularly those where Western schooling is not yet popular, prefer to emphasise the relationship between intellect and social ability. In Zambia's rural Katete District, for instance, the concept of ''nzelu'' includes both cleverness (''chenjela'') and responsibility (''tumikila'').

In 2017, Serpell received an award from the Society for Research in Child Development (SRCD) for "Distinguished Contributions to Understanding International, Cultural and Contextual Diversity in Child Development".

His research and publications extend into the fields of education for children with special needs, early childhood education and parenting, and educational policy, with special attention to the African region. Provided by Wikipedia