Interesting article.
I'd dispute their definition of "small". Atheists average in the 60th percentile while the devout are in the 40th.
The difference is even more profound when the self-descriptions "conservative" and "liberal" are used.
The study found that young adults who said they were "very conservative" had an average adolescent IQ of 95, whereas those who said they were "very liberal" averaged 106.
It also makes sense that "conservatism" as a worldview of keeping things stable would be a safer approach than venturing toward the unfamiliar, Bailey said.
Neither Bailey nor Kanazawa identify themselves as liberal; Bailey is conservative and Kanazawa is "a strong libertarian."
A 95 IQ puts a person in the 37.7th percentile. 106 is the 64.6th percentile.
In other words, fully half of people who describe themselves as "very conservative" are stupider than 63% of people generally. Conversely, half of those who describe themselves as "very liberal" are smarter than 65% of people.
100 IQ is the mean; where unusually smart conservatives and unusually stupid liberals rub shoulders.
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