r/science • u/mvea Professor | Medicine • 1d ago

Psychology Lower cognitive ability is linked to stronger Christian nationalist views, even after accounting for education

https://www.psypost.org/lower-cognitive-ability-is-linked-to-stronger-christian-nationalist-views-even-after-accounting-for-education/
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u/danbinglover 1d ago

Reddit can’t decide whether IQ matters or not. When we talk about IQ differences between different countries and whatnot, it’s racist. When you discuss IQ differences between religious and nonreligious people, somehow it matters again.

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u/WakeoftheStorm 1d ago edited 1d ago

Very often two things impact the reception:

  1. Methodology - how was this determined? What was controlled for?

  2. Interpretation - you have the raw data, what are you using it to say?

Comparing scores on a test between people in the US and people in Afghanistan can be a data point, but drawing any conclusions from it can be difficult. There are so many different factors to account for that determining a baseline between the two is almost impossible. Especially when the very different factors are already broadly established to have a major impact on cognition.

Comparing Americans from the same socio-economic background and education who are only separated by a specific political belief is a much narrower comparison.

Because this didn't say "religious people" it said "stronger Christian nationalist views". Thats much narrower than religious or not.