Intelligence hereditary?

[reailtyre]

Long time user but name changed as I discuss possibly outing information.

Not a TAAT but inspired by something I've seen this morning in 'Gifted and Talented' where a mnetter was asking about her DD's mathematical ability and mentioned that as she had a very high IQ, she'd expect her daughter to also be intelligent.

Is that true? I'm a teacher and have two degrees so I guess I'm relatively intelligent, although by no means a genius and my qualifications are in an arts subject not a scientific or mathematical one.

My husband is a Police Officer and although he's got common sense, he is most definitely not 'textbook clever' and left school with no qualifications.

Does this automatically mean that our children cannot be highly intelligent because we're not?

AIBU to believe that a child can be intelligent even if their parent isn't and similarly, just because someone is intelligent, doesn't mean they'll pass that on to their offspring?

I think there's an element of nature as well as nurture.

I think there was a study fairly recently that found mathematical ability was recessive, so in theory it could come out of no where.

I'm fairly certain some artistic ability is inherited too, but don't know if there's been any research on that.

I think it's complicated by factors such as genes, how much money you have, which school you go to, how much time your parents put into developing you, and the personality of the child.

I know some seriously bright people whose parents were only average achievers. But that might be because they didn't get the same opportunities. Equally one of my ex boyfriends had parents who both had a PhD from Cambridge. He struggled to get a 2:2.

Intelligence doesn't always translate into academic success either. Some v bright people don't do very well at school.

So to conclude - I think genes are definitely a part of it, but only one part.

I think it can be hereditary.

I'm a member of Mensa and have a high IQ. My husband, whilst intelligent is more the norm. Our daughter I suspect has a higher IQ than I do. In fact I'm fairly sure of it. She has to do certain tests for job applications and I've tried them with her and she's marginally faster/better than I am.

So like anything, from hair colour to eye colour, I think you can inherit certain characteristics from either of your parents. So it's not a given, but I think yes it's a characteristic you can inherit...or not.

All the evidence points to the heritability of intelligence, if you accept that as a construct.

I think the are studies to show that children it's the mothers educational level that affects children's ability.

I don’t think it’s inherited per se, but it is how it in nurtured within the home that makes a difference. Children from homes with very academic parents will be surrounded by conversations involving high order thinking, they will be exposed to a rich vocabulary and academic success with be both valued and expected, IQ test all have a cultural element.

I’m sure it’s mostly genetic. Occasionally you get a real genius with not very clever parents and vice versa.

On the other hand, it’s not as if you’re assured a carbon copy as a child. I am seen as intelligent by colleagues and friends (‘top’ uni degree, good vocabulary, geeky interests) and so is my husband and i have found it very annoying that it’s assumed my son will be exactly like us. So far he’s below average in maths and reading/writing - he may well change but it’s not helpful to have people assume he’ll be a mini version of us and then act shocked that he’s not on vermillion reading book band.

Really only? That's so interesting. What's the theory behind that?

There is a hereditary element to it, because there is for virtually everything. Genes determine how our bodies structure and function, which of course has an impact on almost everything we are.

Nurture just continues the job that nature starts.

There's academic ability and then there's intelligence - some people have both but others have one or the other.

DH is the latter (though does have a degree), his brother is the former (high end degree, high flying career but no common sense). Even my BIL calls DH "the smart one".

I have been fairly academically successful but I had all my children with a stupid man (so I'm not that smart )
2 of my kids are academically successful and 2 are definitely not academically successful.
This probably doesn't prove anything.

Intellegence, as in what you'd measure on an IQ test, is highly hereditary. This does not necessarily translate to academic achievement, however.

Posted too soon.

I think intelligence is inherited but academic ability is largely a result of nurture.

DH & I are of pretty average intelligence; clever in some ways, but nothing remarkable.

One of our DC is scary-clever at maths. Like human calculator freaky. We did nothing different with him, no extra maths at home or anything, he just 'gets' stuff. No idea where it came from.

It used to be thought that intelligence was passed down by the mother but that might have changed.

This is something that's fascinated me - I don't know if it's as straightforward as nurture. You have to really want to learn, just for the sake of learning - you need that fierce intellectual curiosity to do exceptionally well academically. I don't have it, DH doesn't have it - but one of my (4) DCs does have it. Where did it come from?

I'm not a biologist, but isn't there a theory, not sure if it's proven, that nature has a tendency to revert to the norm? (Something to do with Mendel and peas?)

So two parents with v high IQs will be likely to have children who are closer to the average, tho' still more intelligent than average. This is true in my own family, but in the next generation there is a child who is more intelligent than either of his grandparents.

It's the old nature-nurture debate, but it's my personal view that IQ is heritable. Why should the brain be different from other physical characteristics?

I'd read that intelligence is passed down the female line. Dd is relieved as, in her own words, her dad is thick as mince.

Both myself and DH are 2e (gifted with a LD) and we have a son who is also 2e. Tbh I think giftedness is generally inherited but not necessarily ‘a gift’.

I'd agree academic success and inteligence are two very different things. Correlated sure, but not the same. Intelligence we are born with, academic success is environmental and nurture, with yes intelligence required to enable it.

You can be highly intelligent with a shit academic record, due to nurture and environment, you can have a good academic record, with moderate intelligence due to nurture and environment.

I thought that the maternal impact on intelligence was down to a small evolutionary divergence that had been noticed since women became more educated?

The theory being that men used to marry women for their looks/character/status without particular regard for intelligence. But as women began to be educated to the same level as men, educated men began to associate more exclusively with educated women and therefore naturally intelligent people began to breed together. The result - theoretically - being population divergence into more intelligent and less intelligent strands.

I'd always assumed that the connection between a mother's educational achievement and a child's intelligence was due to mothers still having the larger role in raising children, hence a more intelligent mother is more likely to provide a more stimulating environment and more likely to support early education.

I think it’s a bit of both nature and nurture

In my df family there was no time for family nuturing , stimulation just survival and hard work. Two of his dbs who got education went on to get numerous degrees and presented as actual genius really. That level of intelligence has popped out here and there in the next generation who had more stimulation as times were easier. So l think if genius is there its there.
By the way the next generation with high flyers didn't necessarily get high flying jobs so l wouldn't worry. They were more inclined to philosophical study which often doesn't pay much. Normal intelligence combined with ambition and hard work will get your dc a long way.