Association Of Cognitive Ability Research Articles

Do Smarter People Have More Conservative Economic Attitudes? Assessing the Relationship Between Cognitive Ability and Economic Ideology.

Evidence on the association of cognitive ability with economic attitudes is mixed. We conducted a meta-analysis (k = 20, N = 46,426) to examine the relationship between objective measures of cognitive ability and economic ideology and analyzed survey data (N = 3,375) to test theoretical explanations for the association. The meta-analysis provided evidence for a small positive association with a weighted mean effect size of r = .07 (95% CI = [0.02, 0.12]), suggesting that higher cognitive ability is associated with conservative views on economic issues, but effect sizes were extremely heterogeneous. Tests using representative survey data provided support for both a positive association of cognitive ability with economic conservatism that is mediated through income as well as for a negative association that is mediated through a higher need for certainty. Hence, multiple causal mechanisms with countervailing effects might explain the low overall association of cognitive ability with economic political attitudes.

The Association of Cognitive Ability with Right–Wing Ideological Attitudes and Prejudice: A Meta–Analytic Review

The cognitive functioning of individuals with stronger endorsement of right–wing and prejudiced attitudes has elicited much scholarly interest. Whereas many studies investigated cognitive styles, less attention has been directed towards cognitive ability. Studies investigating the latter topic generally reveal lower cognitive ability to be associated with stronger endorsement of right–wing ideological attitudes and greater prejudice. However, this relationship has remained widely unrecognized in literature. The present meta–analyses revealed an average effect size of r = −. 20 [95% confidence interval (95% CI) [−0.23, −0.17]; based on 67 studies, N = 84 017] for the relationship between cognitive ability and right–wing ideological attitudes and an average effect size of r = −.19 (95% CI [−0.23, −0.16]; based on 23 studies, N = 27 011) for the relationship between cognitive ability and prejudice. Effect sizes did not vary significantly across different cognitive abilities and sample characteristics. The effect strongly depended on the measure used for ideological attitudes and prejudice, with the strongest effect sizes for authoritarianism and ethnocentrism. We conclude that cognitive ability is an important factor in the genesis of ideological attitudes and prejudice and thus should become more central in theorizing and model building. Copyright © 2015 European Association of Personality Psychology

OP31 Cognitive ability and reaction time are associated with major causes of mortality: evidence from a population based prospective cohort study

Background The association of premorbid cognitive ability with all-cause mortality is well established. Less is known about specific causes. All-cause mortality is relatively uninformative about aetiology and more evidence is needed for specific causes, particularly the major causes of death. Critics of IQ point to possible cultural biases and the need for neutral measures, like reaction times. We examine the association of cognitive ability with major causes of mortality, including: CHD, cancer and respiratory disease. The measures of cognitive ability include a standard IQ test, the Alice Heim 4 (AH4), as well as four-choice reaction times (RT). Methods Data were derived from the oldest cohort of the West of Scotland Twenty-07 Study. Participants were randomly sampled from the Central Clydeside Conurbation, a mainly urban area centred on Glasgow city. At baseline they were interviewed in their homes by trained interviewers; the AH4 was administered and reaction times measured using a portable electronic device. Vital status was ascertained via linkage to the NHS central register. Cox regression was used in SAS 9.4 for the main analyses. Adjustments were made for sex, smoking status, Social Class and baseline self-rated health. Results Full data on AH4, RT and covariates were available for 1305 out of 1551. During 26 years of follow-up, there were 707 deaths: 148 CHD; 53 stroke; 262 cancer; 84 respiratory; and 160 ‘other’ causes. AH4 scores and reaction times showed strong and robust associations with mortality from CHD, respiratory disease and other causes. There was little evidence for an association with stroke but some for cancer; subsequent analysis showed this to be due to lung cancer deaths. Hazard ratios were only partially attenuated when adjusted for smoking status, social class and self-rated health. Adjusted hazard ratios (95% CIs) for AH4 and RT mean were: for CHD 1.25 (1.02, 1.54) and 1.29 (1.09, 1.52), respectively; for respiratory disease 1.36 (1.03, 1.78) and 1.37 (1.12, 1.68); and for other causes 1.40 (1.15, 1.70) and 1.41 (1.22, 1.63). Conclusion These results confirm earlier analyses of all-cause mortality carried out after 14 years of follow-up. CHD and respiratory diseases are identified as two likely components of the relationship. Association with the residual category of ‘other’ causes suggests more components yet to be discovered. The similar results for reaction times imply that social or cultural biases do not explain the association between cognitive ability and mortality.