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Lacking "emotional maturity" doesn't necessitate simplistic. Would you mind expounding upon what other factors there are?

by aik 17y ago

pw0ncakes 17y ago
First of all, I think that people with high IQs tend to have a stronger tendency toward mental illnesses and related patterns such as rumination, hypersensitivity to rejection, and low self-confidence. I think many of the underperformers have what might be considered subclinical mental illness (but is more accurately described as the normal exaggerated sensitivity of creative people and adolescents). So, they're more "fragile" off the bat, and this is probably neurological in basis. We can provide more support as a society, but there are obvious limits regarding what can be done here. Second, society is generally bad at recognizing talent and connecting it with the resources that could be used to actualize it. Those resources tend to go to people-pleasers and horse-traders rather than to those who can make the most use of them (who are almost always viewed with suspicion). This is true as much in academia as anywhere else. Combine the general stupidity of society and the hypersensitivity of the sharpest intellects, and you have a lot of very smart people who get discouraged and bitter, then lose all desire to play.
- scott_s 17y ago
  First of all, I think that people with high IQs tend to have a stronger tendency toward mental illnesses and related patterns such as rumination, hypersensitivity to rejection, and low self-confidence. Is that a belief support by anecdote, or have you seen some study supporting it?
  - pw0ncakes 17y ago
    This article is pretty good on covering the beneficial neural correlates of depression: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/28/magazine/28depression-t.html?pagewanted=1 http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/28/magazine/28depression-t.ht... . Whether they bear on IQ itself is an open question, but the fundamental concept is that certain mental habits that produce depression also produce focused thinking (which is a necessity for people who want to achieve at high levels).
    - yters 17y ago
      Maybe one explanation is that people who can focus very well on a problem can see it best and solve it best, thus have high IQs. Since their minds focus so well, it is hard for them to lose focus and loosen up, essential for socializing. Thus, people treat them as weird, they feel rejected, and grow bitter.
      - pw0ncakes 17y ago
        Very likely. The intense, problem-solving focus doesn't hold well in social interaction. A common social quirk of smart people, when they're young-- say 5-10, is to come out with a really good retort 5 seconds after it was appropriate and when it's no longer funny (because it requires a conversational "rewind"). This is because they've put a lot of energy and focus into saying the "right" (funny, most socially beneficial) thing instead of going with the flow.

Lacking "emotional maturity" doesn't necessitate simplistic. Would you mind expounding upon what other factors there are?

by aik 17y ago

Lacking "emotional maturity" doesn't necessitate simplistic. Would you mind expounding upon what other factors there are?

pw0ncakes 17y ago

First of all, I think that people with high IQs tend to have a stronger tendency toward mental illnesses and related patterns such as rumination, hypersensitivity to rejection, and low self-confidence. I think many of the underperformers have what might be considered subclinical mental illness (but is more accurately described as the normal exaggerated sensitivity of creative people and adolescents). So, they're more "fragile" off the bat, and this is probably neurological in basis. We can provide more support as a society, but there are obvious limits regarding what can be done here. Second, society is generally bad at recognizing talent and connecting it with the resources that could be used to actualize it. Those resources tend to go to people-pleasers and horse-traders rather than to those who can make the most use of them (who are almost always viewed with suspicion). This is true as much in academia as anywhere else. Combine the general stupidity of society and the hypersensitivity of the sharpest intellects, and you have a lot of very smart people who get discouraged and bitter, then lose all desire to play.

scott_s 17y ago
First of all, I think that people with high IQs tend to have a stronger tendency toward mental illnesses and related patterns such as rumination, hypersensitivity to rejection, and low self-confidence. Is that a belief support by anecdote, or have you seen some study supporting it?
- pw0ncakes 17y ago
  This article is pretty good on covering the beneficial neural correlates of depression: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/28/magazine/28depression-t.html?pagewanted=1 http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/28/magazine/28depression-t.ht... . Whether they bear on IQ itself is an open question, but the fundamental concept is that certain mental habits that produce depression also produce focused thinking (which is a necessity for people who want to achieve at high levels).
  - yters 17y ago
    Maybe one explanation is that people who can focus very well on a problem can see it best and solve it best, thus have high IQs. Since their minds focus so well, it is hard for them to lose focus and loosen up, essential for socializing. Thus, people treat them as weird, they feel rejected, and grow bitter.
    - pw0ncakes 17y ago
      Very likely. The intense, problem-solving focus doesn't hold well in social interaction. A common social quirk of smart people, when they're young-- say 5-10, is to come out with a really good retort 5 seconds after it was appropriate and when it's no longer funny (because it requires a conversational "rewind"). This is because they've put a lot of energy and focus into saying the "right" (funny, most socially beneficial) thing instead of going with the flow.