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6 comments
For
Turi5y ago
**One of the largest meta-analyses of intelligence shows men have, on average, a roughly 5point IQ advantage over women**
The study by [Dr. Paul Irving](https://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/paul.irwing.html) and [Prof. Richard Lynn](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Lynn) in the [British Journal of Psychology]( https://bpspsychub.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1348/000712605X53542) reveals no sex difference in general cognitive ability up to the age of 14 and a significant sex difference at 15, which then increases to its adult value of 5 IQ points in favour of males.
[Other research](https://qz.com/441905/men-are-both-dumber-and-smarter-than-women/) seems to suggest women's intelligence is more bunched, with men being both dumber and smarter (there are more men at either ends of the spectrum).
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JenReneeGilley5y ago
**TL;DR -- IQ scores fail to accurately measure intelligence in any given individual, let alone be used as a reference point for determining which gender has more brain power.**
This would be compelling evidence, except for the fact that [IQ scores are meaningless](https://johndabell.com/2019/12/29/iq-is-meaningless/) because they fail to take into account specialized areas of intelligence.
Since society places lovely gender rules on who (generally) specializes in what, IQ also fails to take into account gender bias and its effect on specialized intelligence.
The truth of the matter is, we basically need *hundreds if not thousands* of separate IQ categories to test an individual human being on in order to get an accurate read on their specialized areas of intelligence, then we can average all the specialized scores together to get an "Ultimate IQ Score" which we can then parade around and use to boost our egos.
But is it really worth all of that work just to have intelligence bragging rights? Just some food for thought.
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Nsoper194y ago
IQ tests are not meaningless though they have flaws. But they are be far one of the best ways of quantifying intelligence between different people and one of the best predictors of one's outcomes in life.
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Commentary
Sg915y ago
It's difficult to say. Whilst yes, men are smarter than women, they're also dumber. Men dominate the extreme ends of intelligence. The average idiot and the average genius will both be male whereas women dominate the centre of that scale.
Source: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26158978/
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JenReneeGilley5y ago
And yet, [ten years after that article was published](https://www.newsweek.com/men-women-brain-structure-intelligence-996263), these widely-held stereotypes are still being disproven.
The article I just linked noted that there is greater variability in the *size* of men's brains. Not in intelligence. In *size*. And they had a difficult time telling which brain belonged to which sex as a result.
One problem that I have with the abstract from pubmed is that their study was conducted on 11-year-olds, who do not yet have fully developed brains. The ideal age group to test would likely be between 25 and 40. Why? 25 is about when the brain is fully developed, and 40 is just before menopause for most women. Why does menopause matter? Because [during the menopausal transition](https://news.weill.cornell.edu/news/2021/06/imaging-study-reveals-brain-changes-during-the-transition-to-menopause), the brain undergoes significant physiological changes, which often go back to normal after menopause is complete. So, this would not be the time to test normal brain functionality in females.
In any case. Intelligence varies between individuals, not between sexes. There are no male-dominated ends of the spectrum -- only the spectrum itself.
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Against
erinosgood5y ago
**Men and women are so cognitively similar that difference in intelligence on a wide scale can't be measured accurately**
Much of the evidence cited as to why men and smarter than women is so marginal that it isn't conclusive, or contains measures that aren't accurate representations of intelligence. There is *no* substantial evidence that men are definitely smarter than women (or vice versa), and so it simply can't be claimed as fact.
- Any measured differences in cerebral capabilities have been [so small that they have been deemed meaningless](https://www.apa.org/topics/neuropsychology/men-women-cognitive-skills), with cultural and social factors instead making an impact on how intelligent different genders are perceived
- Studies into this idea have often only accounted for perceived biological sex, and gender identity has been largely excluded as a factor in determining intelligence
- Although [significant differences have been found in male and female brains], they do not indicate any significant (or even minor) differences in intelligence
- However, women have displayed [higher levels of emotional intelligence than men](https://www.forbes.com/sites/travisbradberry/2016/06/21/why-women-are-smarter-than-men/?sh=49e2d65d17e6), which is crucial for professional, personal, and academic discussion - emotional intelligence *is* intelligence
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