Sciam - cover

From the February 2007 Scientific American Magazine | 0 comments

Unsettled Scores ( Preview )

Has the black-white IQ gap narrowed?

By Marina Krakovsky   

 
e-mail print comment

More from the Magazine

This much is uncontested: for most of the 20th century, blacks worldwide have scored, on average, 15 points lower on most IQ tests than whites have.

What scientists cannot agree on is why. Most attribute the gap to differences in education, health and other environmental influences. Hereditarians, on the other hand, view the black-white difference as largely genetic in origin. They note, among other indirect evidence, that the disparity persists across time and around the world--a permanence that is crucial to the debate over what explains group dif¿ferences. "If black-white differences converged--if there wasn't this whopping big difference everywhere--there'd be no debate left," says J. Philippe Rush¿ton, a psychologist at the University of Western Ontario and an outspoken hereditarian.

Graphic - Get the Rest of the Article
Graphic - Subscribe     Graphic - Buy this Issue
Already a Digital subscriber? Sign-in Now
If your institution has site license access, enter here.

Read Comments (0) | Post a comment


Share
Propeller    Digg!  Reddit delicious  Fark 
Slashdot    RT @sciam Unsettled ScoresTwitter Review it on NewsTrust 
sharebar end

Discuss This Article


Click here to submit your comment.

VIEW:

2,573 characters remaining
 
  Email me when someone responds to this discussion.
 

risk free issuefree gift

Sciam - cover Email:
Name:
Address:
Address 2:
City:
State:  
spacer




Editor's Pick

  • Adapting to the Freshwater CrisisForward-thinking experts are getting a better handle on the growing global water shortage and coming up with innovative approaches to ensuring the security, safety and sustainability of this resource

Newsletter

Health & Medicine Newsletter

Get weekly coverage delivered to your inbox


 Podcasts

  • 60-Second Earth     RSS  · iTunes The Jellyfish Menace
    click to enable

    Download

  • 60-Second Science     RSS  · iTunes Plants Share Light If Neighbor Is Related
    click to enable

    Download





ADVERTISEMENT
 
 


Also on Scientific American


© 1996-2009 Scientific American Inc. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.
ADVERTISEMENT