This is a very common belief nowadays, especially among young men on the Internet. Personally, I think it’s crazy.
Mama writes:
When it people with high IQ’s have trouble getting rich, it’s usually because they have Asperger’s.
That is just silly. I have siblings and cousins all with high IQ’s. And what do you mean by rich?
I do not make much money. Let us look at my immediate family:
- I am 56 years old, and for 15 years now, have had an income around the poverty level. Masters Degree (MA), Teaching Credential. IQ 147.
- My sibling age 46 has a very low income. Bachelors Degree (BA). IQ 140+.
- A sibling age 49 is not even employed, has never made much money in life and has mostly worked at working class jobs. Masters Degree (MA). IQ 140+.
- My Mom has never made a whole lot of money in life, but she did come from an older generation. BA. IQ 150.
- A cousin age 54 has a very low income. Probably IQ 132+.
- Another cousin age 57 is now working at Staples for $10/hour. Probably IQ 132+.
- Another cousin age 54 worked at low income working class jobs his whole life, his last in a warehouse. IQ 139.
- Another cousin age 55 works as a motorcycle mechanic, and I do not get the impression that he makes a lot of money. Probably IQ 132+.
- Another cousin age 51 is working at a gardening store. Masters Degree in Science (MS). Possibly IQ 132+.
- Another cousin age 60 makes excellent money now, but for a very long time, he worked for the post office in a low income job. BA. Probably IQ 145+. I somehow met someone who had gone to high school with him when I was up in LA hanging out in Silverlake one night, and once the guy heard my last name, he mentioned this guy and asked if I was related to him. I said that’s my cousin, and the guy said, “He’s the smartest person I have ever met.”
Not even one of these people has Asperger’s or even anything closely approximating it, although one of the above is indeed pathologically shy and introverted (look more like Social Phobia).
Where do people get this idea that high IQ’s are an automatic path to riches anyway?
Actually, IQ income advantage maxes out at ~125. After that, incomes start to decline with increasing IQ, probably because very high IQ’s are associated with, well, a bit of weirdness and out there-ness. I recently read an article about people with extremely high IQ’s, as in 160-180, and they said that many of them were working in menial or working class jobs, many were not married and living alone, and quite a few were living in poverty or near poverty. Some were not even employed. The attitude of the article was that once an IQ gets that high, a lot of the people with IQ’s like that are, well, sort of weird. They didn’t mention Asperger’s though, and I didn’t think that any of them had it.
You can go on Youtube and search for videos about “the world’s smartest man.” The guy has been working at jobs like bartender, bouncer in a bar, lumberjack, etc. his whole life, and he’s never made much money.