Many studies show a drop in the average intelligence quotient, the IQ, in developed countries. But are the main stakeholders aware of this phenomenon? A Cypriot study found that men tend to overestimate their intelligence when they are young.
Some 311 Greeks participated in this study, whose findings were published in the journal Brain and Behavior. Among them were 128 men, more or less young. They were asked to rate their intelligence on a scale of 0 to 100, and to rate their health and physical attractiveness from 1 to 9. Participants also had to pass several tests to assess their intellectual efficiency and creativity.
The more modest women
Researchers have found that men overestimate their IQ, unlike women who are much more modest in their intellectual abilities. They also tend to estimate on the rise their emotional quotient (EQ), this form of social intelligence which supposes the capacity to understand one’s emotions and those of others.
Other scientific work has shown that men are often convinced that they have a high intelligence quotientunlike women. A phenomenon which would simultaneously attest toa form of “masculine arrogance” and “feminine humility” for Adrian Furnham, professor of psychology at University College London.
Reversal of the trend with age?
But Vaitsa Giannouli, the author of the study recently published in the journal Brain and Behavior, found that the “masculine arrogance” bias seems less pronounced as men get older. In other words, men overestimate their intellectual abilities less as they age.
“In Greece, young men evaluate their intelligence quotient and their emotional quotient higher than young women. This result has not been confirmed for older adults, for whom we surprisingly observe the opposite phenomenon”, explains- she. Even more surprising, women show less “humility”to use Adrian Furnham’s words, when they get older.
“Older women say they have a high IQ and EQ, unlike men of the same age,” says Vaitsa Giannouli in her study. Until now, the scientific community had not observed differences between older men and women in the self-assessment of their intellectual abilities.
Further research is needed to explore this topic further, given the limited panel size of the Cyprus study.