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High IQs are associated with mental and physical disorders

scientificamerican.com

261–270 of 297 posts

Re: High IQs are associated with mental and physical disorders

#261
post #122
post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes. It's a weird bunch (not in a bad way!). I went to their meetings a couple times by invitation, and it never really "clicked" - for many of their members, their MENSA membership and related activities are a big part of their identity and their life, and I wasn't able to connect. I heard the same thing from a couple of friends who also met their entrance criteria, and there's certainly a lot of selection bias. Whi…

To me, as an outsider, I don't see the immediate purpose of the club. I imagine most clubs are about activities or a mission. I used to go social dancing and the purpose of that group of people was to dance, and they would have various events all about dancing or improving your dancing. If you join a social justice or politically minded group, I imagine your purpose is to engage in activities to further your ideals.…

HN is a club for discussing "Anything that good hackers would find interesting." Is it so different?

Re: High IQs are associated with mental and physical disorders

#262
"Mensa is associated with mental and physical disorders"

FTFY

Postscript: I am merely clarifying the title: whether the title is true or false is not my concern.

PPS: Lots of dissing Mensa here! But Mensa members score higher on IQ tests and, on average, are significantly brighter than non-members.

Re: High IQs are associated with mental and physical disorders

#264
post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am normal, healthy, and a Mensa member. What exactly do you mean by that?

The only person I know in Mensa used it in his resume which always grossed me out.

He's right to use it b/c Mensa membership is sometimes used as a hiring filter. It's neither discriminatory nor illegal to do so.

Re: High IQs are associated with mental and physical disorders

#265

People who have done IQ tests out of curiosity: Was it worth it? I want to do the test but I know I'll be disillusioned with the result.

"Worth it?"

Many people are tested w/o their knowledge in childhood, so there is no cost. If you ever get a chance to examine your grades and/or middle school records then you may find an IQ there.

Re: High IQs are associated with mental and physical disorders

#266

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, the evidence is quite strong: https://randomcriticalanalysis.com/2015/06/18/on-sat-act-iq-...

> The SAT – ASVAB correlation is quite strong and it is probably weakened by range restriction effects. People with lower IQ scores and/or lower HS GPA are much less likely to sit for the SAT. That's a bullshit guess. More importantly that study did not account for performance disparities versus preparation.

Putting aside the question of the selection effect (which, frankly, seems like it could only realistically go in one direction, unless you want to propose a plausible mechanism by which people with higher than average IQ are _less_ likely to sit for these standardized exams)...

You could also spend 5 seconds Googling the question and find that that this is not exactly an untrod ground in academic literature. The relationship is strong and well-established, far more so than almost any other result from the social sciences.

Also, yes, test results, can, in fact, be improved by studying (or other things!). This does not mean that they are not strongly correlated to IQ. Reality is generally not monocausal. I don't see how this contradicts the original claim.

Re: High IQs are associated with mental and physical disorders

#267
post #122
post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes. It's a weird bunch (not in a bad way!). I went to their meetings a couple times by invitation, and it never really "clicked" - for many of their members, their MENSA membership and related activities are a big part of their identity and their life, and I wasn't able to connect. I heard the same thing from a couple of friends who also met their entrance criteria, and there's certainly a lot of selection bias. Whi…

To me, as an outsider, I don't see the immediate purpose of the club. I imagine most clubs are about activities or a mission. I used to go social dancing and the purpose of that group of people was to dance, and they would have various events all about dancing or improving your dancing. If you join a social justice or politically minded group, I imagine your purpose is to engage in activities to further your ideals.…

I think you're only looking at "smart people" as people who want to share how smart they are. You seem to be ignoring the social isolation that can come with it. Your interests might no be similar to those around you, if you're a child you might be able to meet others who are different in the same way, etc.

I very rarely discuss IQ since so many people are hostile to it. A high IQ makes you different. Sometimes it's subtle, like as an adult you'll typically have different interests compared to a lot of peers, and other times it's far less subtle, like when you're a school aged kid and you're always made to feel different (FYI most school aged kids don't want to feel different).

Re: High IQs are associated with mental and physical disorders

#268
post #182
post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

my ignorant hypothesis is that being too far from average decreases your chances of having a healthy social life and being highly social would be the underlying factor in predicting health both physically and mentally.

Agreed. If you live in a world that is designed mostly for and by people who are unlike you in some significant way, it's hard not to feel like an outsider. And if feeling like an outsider is classified as a type of poor mental health or anxiety, well...

I feel that the best thing someone with a really IQ can do is enter into a work culture where their IQ is going to be kind of average. Their work peer group will overlap their social peer group and they'll have a sense of belonging. If you have a really high IQ child then get them into schools/clubs where they are more normal.

Re: High IQs are associated with mental and physical disorders

#269
post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Same publication that two days ago posts about how climate anxiety is a white issue... At least they could stop calling themselves "scientific" american.

That doesn't clash with my observations at all. Environmental activists of all strains, including climate enthusiasts, are overwhelmingly white.

It might not clash with your observations but it’s a pretty racist thing to say

Re: High IQs are associated with mental and physical disorders

#270

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The SAT – ASVAB correlation is quite strong and it is probably weakened by range restriction effects. People with lower IQ scores and/or lower HS GPA are much less likely to sit for the SAT. That's a bullshit guess. More importantly that study did not account for performance disparities versus preparation.

Putting aside the question of the selection effect (which, frankly, seems like it could only realistically go in one direction, unless you want to propose a plausible mechanism by which people with higher than average IQ are _less_ likely to sit for these standardized exams)... You could also spend 5 seconds Googling the question and find that that this is not exactly an untrod ground in academic literature. The rela…

> This does not mean that they are not strongly correlated to IQ.

It does not mean they are related or that they aren’t, which only suggests you are missing the point: selection bias.

> You could also spend 5 seconds Googling the question and find that that this is not exactly an untrod ground in academic literature.

It has been studied exhaustively. The relation between IQ and academic performance is poor according to research from the APA in addition to the personal opinions of people who perform college selection professionally. That correlation is better than a random guess but isn’t anything close to alignment.

People, despite the evidence, need this to be true. After all it is a money making industry. Standardized college selection tests are like tax preparation, an industry that can be easily eliminated by a more simplistic unbiased and more effective tool. With enough effort to the contrary the arguments begin to sound like a self-sustaining fraud built around a fictional necessity and a bunch of bandwagon fallacies.

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