Buzz
Intellectuals may have another advantage to boast about: a potentially longer life.
A long-term study reveals that children with higher intelligence may outlive their peers. While education has been associated with increased longevity [PDF], it’s not solely about years spent in school. Intelligence quotient (IQ) also plays a significant role.
In 1932, nearly 2,800 children aged 10 and 11 in Aberdeen, Scotland, participated in an IQ test as part of a nationwide study. Decades later, a mental health expert from the University of Aberdeen and a psychologist from the University of Edinburgh located as many of these individuals as possible to analyze their lifespans and compare them with their childhood IQ scores.
By utilizing public records, researchers tracked down 2,230 individuals from the original group (approximately 80 percent) and analyzed their childhood cognitive abilities against their survival status by 1997, at age 76. The findings revealed that those who scored higher on the IQ test at age 11 had a greater likelihood of reaching 75 years of age. This trend was more pronounced among women than men, potentially due to the impact of World War II, as men with higher average IQs in the cohort were more likely to have died during the war.
For women, an 11-point deficit in IQ scores reduced their chances of surviving to age 76 below the 75 percent threshold. A 30-point lower IQ meant individuals were only half as likely to live to 76 compared to those with an average IQ.
The reasons behind the link between higher IQ and increased longevity remain unclear. IQ tests are not definitive measures of innate intelligence, as Scientific American highlights. Factors such as a test taker's expectations and socioeconomic conditions can influence their performance. A higher IQ at age 11 might reflect societal privileges, such as better childhood nutrition, that contribute to improved health outcomes. Additionally, greater cognitive abilities could lead to safer occupations, like office jobs, rather than hazardous factory work.
Furthermore, this study focused solely on children born in 1921 in Scotland, meaning the relationship between IQ and mortality might differ for individuals born in other locations or eras, where job opportunities and health risks vary significantly.
