Regional differences in intelligence are positively associated with many economic, social and demographic phenomena, like income, health, educational and occupational achievement, and negatively associated with poverty, fertility and crime

Regional differences in intelligence in 22 countries and their economic, social and demographic correlates: A review. Richard Lynna, John Fuerst, Emil O.W. Kirkegaard. Intelligence, Volume 69, July–August 2018, Pages 24–36. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.intell.2018.04.004

Highlights
•    Regional differences in intelligence are reported for fifteen countries.
•    These are positively associated with many economic, social and demographic phenomena.
•    These include income, health, educational and occupational achievement.
•    These are negatively associated with poverty, fertility and crime.

Abstract: Differences in intelligence have previously been found to be related to a wide range of inter-individual and international social outcomes. There is evidence indicating that intelligence differences are also related to different regional outcomes within nations. A quantitative and narrative review is provided for twenty-two countries (number of regions in parentheses): Argentina (24 to 437), Brazil (27 to 31), British Isles (12 to 392), Chile (15), China (31), Colombia (33), Denmark (7), Finland (4), France (90), Germany (16), India (33), Italy (12 to 19), Japan (47), Mexico (31 to 32), Peru (1468), Portugal (5), Russia (29 to 79), Spain (15 to 48), Switzerland (47), Turkey (12), the USA (30 to 3100), and Vietnam (61). Between regions, intelligence is significantly associated with a wide range of economic, social, and demographic phenomena, including income (r_unweighted =  .56), educational attainment (r_unweighted =  .59), health (r_unweighted =  .49), general socioeconomic status (r_unweighted =  .55), and negatively with fertility (r_unweighted = −.51) and crime (r_unweighted = −.20). Proposed causal models for these differences are noted. It is concluded that regional differences in intelligence within nations warrant further focus; methodological concerns that need to be addressed in future research are detailed.

Keywords: Intelligence; Cognitive ability; Income; Health; Achievement; Fertility; Crime; SES; General socioeconomic factor; Inequality