Flynn Effect Offers New Hope for Rising Intelligence in Future Generations

Azarakhsh Makri, a psychiatrist and associate professor at Tehran University of Medical Sciences, discussed the relationship between intelligence and cognitive science at the Ninth Brain Mapping Congress, emphasizing the importance of understanding cognitive abilities in addressing societal challenges, including cognitive warfare.

He said intelligence has received less attention in some research fields, despite its extensive scientific foundations. While emotional intelligence, self-control and emotional regulation have become increasingly prominent, he stressed that these areas should not overshadow the importance of general intelligence.

Makri noted that intelligence has become a politically sensitive subject, partly because of concerns about racial discrimination, social inequality and the potential misuse of intelligence testing. He referred to historical controversies surrounding The Bell Curve, published in 1994, and Arthur Jensen's views on the genetic influences on intelligence.

He also highlighted the decline in the use of intelligence tests in American recruitment and education systems, partly following legal challenges over their potentially discriminatory effects, including the landmark Griggs v. Duke Power Co. case.

Referring to the article Mainstream Science on Intelligence, published in The Wall Street Journal, Makri said intelligence should be examined as a scientific subject rather than reduced to political and social debates.

He explained that research supports the existence of a general cognitive ability, known as the g factor, which contributes to performance across different cognitive tests. The theory, introduced by Charles Spearman, challenges the notion that intelligence consists entirely of unrelated abilities.

Makri also rejected the widespread assumption that highly intelligent people are necessarily more vulnerable to depression, addiction and other mental health problems. He said research findings suggest that people with higher intelligence scores tend, on average, to have better mental health and greater happiness.

He added that intelligence is associated with academic and professional performance, although its impact on measurable success may vary across different IQ levels.

Family Background and Intelligence

Referring to a study published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), Makri said researchers assessed the intelligence of children born in 1921 at age 11 and followed 2,792 participants until 1997.

The findings showed that individuals in the highest intelligence quartile had higher survival rates than those in the lowest quartile. Family and social factors, including fathers' occupations and household crowding, were also associated with intelligence scores.

Makri emphasized that cognitive development cannot be separated from living conditions, education, nutrition and broader social circumstances.

He also highlighted the neuroscientific foundations of intelligence, particularly the neural efficiency theory, which suggests that more intelligent individuals may perform certain cognitive tasks more effectively while using fewer neural resources.

Brain-imaging studies, he said, have identified associations between intelligence and neural network organization, as well as differences in brain structure, including cortical thickness.

Working Memory and Cognitive Performance

Makri identified working memory as an important component of intelligence, enabling individuals to retain and process information simultaneously.

He also discussed research on reaction time, explaining that choice reaction time and performance on complex cognitive tasks show stronger associations with intelligence than simple reaction time. Some studies have reported correlations of approximately 0.6.

He added that attention and the ability to monitor and process environmental information are particularly important in occupations such as ship navigation and radar operation.

Makri stressed that intelligence should not be treated as a moral attribute or a measure of human worth. Different professions require different combinations of cognitive abilities, and no single skill should determine an individual's social value.

He also warned that increasing separation between people with similar cognitive abilities and ways of thinking could weaken communication across social groups and contribute to polarization.

Citing fMRI research, he said close friends tend to show more similar brain responses when exposed to identical stimuli, while this similarity decreases as social distance increases.

The Flynn Effect and Future Prospects

Concluding his discussion, Makri identified the Flynn effect as a major reason for his optimism about the future.

He explained that average intelligence test scores have risen across many human populations over approximately the past century, although the reasons behind this trend are not yet fully understood.

The phenomenon, he suggested, points to the potential for changes in human cognitive abilities and highlights the importance of further research into the factors that shape intelligence and its development.