Men with higher IQs are less conservative, study finds

BERLIN - New research suggests that gifted men are less conservative in their political views than men of average cognitive ability.

A study conducted in Germany found that men with higher IQs are less inclined to traditional values, but the lead author, psychologist and intelligence researcher Maximilian Krolo of Saarland University, said the researchers did not find these differences among women.

The study was based on the Marburg Giftedness Project, for which more than 7,000 primary schoolchildren were given IQ tests in the 1987/1988 school year. Around 150 children, or 2% of them, were highly gifted.

Most of these people (107) were observed over many years in a longitudinal study together with a comparison group of people of average intelligence and were repeatedly asked about various topics, the author said.

"Now, more than 35 years later, we were able to ask this group of people questions about their political views," said education researcher Jörn Sparfeldt, a professor at Germany's Saarland University. He said 87 highly gifted adults and 71 adults of average ability responded, a response rate of just under 75%.

According to the researchers, the study participants placed themselves politically on a left-to-right scale and completed a detailed questionnaire on political orientation. It covered four subject areas, including socialism and liberalism.

"This showed that the group of men of average ability tended to support values associated with tradition and strict social order. The men with a high intelligence quotient held these traditional conservative views less often," Krolo said.

"Since highly gifted people often hold influential positions, it is of interest to understand how they view politics, the economy and society," Sparfeldt said. He has led the Marburg Giftedness Project as its scientific director for three years.

The current study showed that high intelligence does not, as one might assume, lead to radical political positions. Instead, highly gifted adults are on average just as politically diverse and moderate as the rest of the population.

"However, there is still a need for further research, for example on the question of whether the more conservative attitudes are also reflected in political action," Sparfeldt said.

The study, which also involved Detlef Rost of Philipps University Marburg in Germany, was published in January in the academic journal Intelligence.

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