A team of psychologists at Edinburgh University has done a study showing that there are twice as many men in the top two percent of the population on the IQ test but that there are twice as many men in the bottom two percent on the IQ test as well. Researchers claim to have eliminated factors such as upbringing and education by comparing siblings and other members of the same family. Researchers did IQ testing on more than 2500 siblings in areas like science, math, English and mechanical ability. Men performed on average better in science and math and had a broader range of test scores than females.
Women had a narrower range of IQ scores and were better in the field of language, according to Telegraph.co.uk. One theory discussed was that men have evolved higher intelligence in order to make themselves more attractive to the opposite sex and that women don’t need intelligence in order to reproduce. Timothy Bates, the lead researcher said, “The female developmental programme may be tilted toward ensuring survival and enjoying the safety of the middle ground.” There is risk in saying such things however. Lawrence Summers, the president of Harvard University was forced to resign after suggesting that women were naturally bad at sciences.