Does intelligence make you left-wing? Are left-wing people smarter than right-wing people? This is the question we can ask ourselves given the results of a psychological study from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities. This conducted several intelligence tests before arriving at a correlation between high intelligence quotient (IQ) and “ range of left-wing and liberal political beliefs “.
People predisposed to intelligence tend to be left-leaning
In a scientific article entitled “ Predicting political beliefs with polygenic scores for cognitive performance and academic achievement », published in the May-June 2024 issue of the magazine Intelligencethe research team summarizes as follows:
“Our findings imply that being genetically predisposed to be more intelligent underlies left-wing beliefs. »
But what does the study consist of to arrive at such a conclusion that will only surprise the right? The scientific team studied the intelligence of over 300 biological and adoptive families, chosen between 1998 and 2003, and studied until 2023. He cross-referenced tests on intelligence quotient (IQ) but also on cognitive performance and educational level.
In general the result was this the most intelligent people according to their test series, regardless of their socio-economic conditions, believed more in social liberalism and less in authoritarianism. Enough to provide many avenues for direct links between intelligence and political beliefs.
In short, it is a valuable study to keep at hand in case, for example, of a heated political debate at the table. And from there to saying that you have to be stupid to be right-wing, there is only one step that stupidity prevents us from taking.
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Source: Madmoizelle
Mary Crossley is an author at “The Fashion Vibes”. She is a seasoned journalist who is dedicated to delivering the latest news to her readers. With a keen sense of what’s important, Mary covers a wide range of topics, from politics to lifestyle and everything in between.
