BBC says Men really are smarter than Women
British Journal of Psychology says that men are on average five points ahead on IQ tests
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Actually BBC is just reporting what the British Journal of Psychology have found, which apparently says that men are on average five points ahead on IQ tests
But do these reports really mean anything, and if so, what?
Read on (headline is linked) for clips from the original article, and some more comments about what I suspect is really going on here. I may surprise you.
'Men cleverer than women' claim
Academics in the UK claim their research shows that men are more intelligent than women.
A study to be published later this year in the British Journal of Psychology says that men are on average five points ahead on IQ tests.
Paul Irwing and Professor Richard Lynn claim the difference grows when the highest IQ levels are considered.
Their research was based on IQ tests given to 80,000 people and a further study of 20,000 students.
'Widening gap'
Dr Irwing, a senior lecturer in organisational psychology at Manchester University, told the Today programme on BBC Radio Four the study showed that, up to the age of 14, there was no difference between the IQs of boys and girls.
"But beyond that age and into adulthood there is a difference of five points, which is small but it can have important implications," he said.
"This is against a background of women dramatically overtaking men in educational attainment and making very rapid advances in terms of occupational achievement."
The academics used a test which is said to measure "general cognitive ability" - spatial and verbal ability.
As intelligence scores among the study group rose, the academics say they found a widening gap between the sexes.
There were twice as many men with IQ scores of 125, for example, a level said to correspond with people getting first-class degrees.
At scores of 155, associated with genius, there were 5.5 men for every woman.
... more at original article
Interesting findings, but again, what does it really mean? Are men smarter than women? Maybe. But enough so to show the results that are reported at the high end of the scale? I'm not so sure.
Is it more likely that these results, much like standardized test scores in the U.S. are showing a bias that exists behind the scense in the testing methodology or test materials? Probably much more likely.
All tests have biases. Whether intentional or not, there are always some people that are going to find some tests easier than others. The questions are never as indiscriminate as they could be. They may have been intentionally designed to mislead, or they mislead because of unintended factors. Peoples life experiences and their own biases and mannerisms will influence their results.
Some people tend to think more "logically" than others, according to a fairly common standard, but it doesn't mean that another persons thinking is any more or less logical, or for that matter correct or incorrect because they choose a different answer.
There are tests which should be simple. True or false: The moon orbits the Earth. Such a question should be easy to answer, but yet there are some that may still believe the answer is false. Their own eyes tell them that the moon is in the same place in the sky virtually every nite. If that is true, then perhaps the moon doesn't orbit the earth at all. It may just stay in the same place, right?
Anyway, it's an interesting article, and great material for discussion on either side.
But do these reports really mean anything, and if so, what?
Read on (headline is linked) for clips from the original article, and some more comments about what I suspect is really going on here. I may surprise you.
'Men cleverer than women' claim
Academics in the UK claim their research shows that men are more intelligent than women.
A study to be published later this year in the British Journal of Psychology says that men are on average five points ahead on IQ tests.
Paul Irwing and Professor Richard Lynn claim the difference grows when the highest IQ levels are considered.
Their research was based on IQ tests given to 80,000 people and a further study of 20,000 students.
'Widening gap'
Dr Irwing, a senior lecturer in organisational psychology at Manchester University, told the Today programme on BBC Radio Four the study showed that, up to the age of 14, there was no difference between the IQs of boys and girls.
"But beyond that age and into adulthood there is a difference of five points, which is small but it can have important implications," he said.
"This is against a background of women dramatically overtaking men in educational attainment and making very rapid advances in terms of occupational achievement."
The academics used a test which is said to measure "general cognitive ability" - spatial and verbal ability.
As intelligence scores among the study group rose, the academics say they found a widening gap between the sexes.
There were twice as many men with IQ scores of 125, for example, a level said to correspond with people getting first-class degrees.
At scores of 155, associated with genius, there were 5.5 men for every woman.
... more at original article
Interesting findings, but again, what does it really mean? Are men smarter than women? Maybe. But enough so to show the results that are reported at the high end of the scale? I'm not so sure.
Is it more likely that these results, much like standardized test scores in the U.S. are showing a bias that exists behind the scense in the testing methodology or test materials? Probably much more likely.
All tests have biases. Whether intentional or not, there are always some people that are going to find some tests easier than others. The questions are never as indiscriminate as they could be. They may have been intentionally designed to mislead, or they mislead because of unintended factors. Peoples life experiences and their own biases and mannerisms will influence their results.
Some people tend to think more "logically" than others, according to a fairly common standard, but it doesn't mean that another persons thinking is any more or less logical, or for that matter correct or incorrect because they choose a different answer.
There are tests which should be simple. True or false: The moon orbits the Earth. Such a question should be easy to answer, but yet there are some that may still believe the answer is false. Their own eyes tell them that the moon is in the same place in the sky virtually every nite. If that is true, then perhaps the moon doesn't orbit the earth at all. It may just stay in the same place, right?
Anyway, it's an interesting article, and great material for discussion on either side.
!