Do atheists have a higher IQ than religious people?

Recent posts have proposed convoluted theories accounting for why atheists score higher on IQ tests than religious people. There is a much simpler explanation. Like a lot of correlations of this type, it is probably less exciting than it appears.

Do religious people have lower IQs?

First and foremost, it should be pointed out that correlation does not mean to point out causation. In fact, there could be many different variables that can explain a religious person could have a lower IQ, just as there are many reasons that an atheist could have a lower IQ also.

Is there a negative relationship between intelligence and religious belief?

It is shown that intelligence measured in psychometric g (general intelligence) is negatively related to religious belief. We also examine whether this negative relationship between intelligence and religious belief is present among nations. We find that, in a sample of 137 countries, the correlation between I.Q and atheism is 0.60.

Does belief in God affect your IQ?

Of course, there are examples of extremely intelligent individuals with strong religious convictions. But various studies have found that, on average, belief in God is associated with lower scores on IQ tests.

Does atheism harness the same religious instinct as atheism?

“But without knowing the precise nature of the ‘religious instinct,’ we can’t rule out the possibility that atheism, or at least some forms of atheism, harness the same instinct (s).”

Do wealthy people have higher IQs?

Even so, the wealthier individuals in a country experience life differently than the poorer ones, developing higher IQ scores and greater religious skepticism. Recent research concluded that part of the reason that people in less religious U.S. states have higher IQs is that they are better educated.

Scientists ran a meta-analysis of 63 studies and found that religious people tend to be less intelligent than nonreligious people. The association was stronger among college students and the general public than for those younger than college age, they found.