High IQ Societies

[Oryx]

High IQ societies such as Mensa give people the opportunity to network and interact with people of similar intelligence to them, creating an interesting community that is held together by the results of one dubiously accurate test. While it can be seen as beneficial to connect with those that can tackle issues with the same depth as you can, it can also been seen as elitist to choose not to interact with those up to your "level" intellectually. This is further entrenched with the use of things such as MensaMatch, a new dating service designed to put Mensans together.

Do you feel that a group specific to high IQ individuals is worthwhile, or does it encourage elitism among those on the higher end? Is there a benefit to hyper-intelligent people interacting with those who didn't score as high on an IQ test (or don't have the time/money/inclination to take one)? If you are a person with a proven high IQ, do you feel like you would be better off if you compartmentalized your relationships by intelligence? If you are not, does the idea of a high IQ individual avoiding your friendship bother you?

 

[Tek]

Like everything, there are both pros and cons to a 'high IQ society'.

For one thing, IQ is only a measure of cognitive intelligence, and not necessarily even a definitive measure at that. Your IQ score will not tell you about your interpersonal, aesthetic, moral, or kinesthetic intelligence. IQ tests, while useful in some ways, are limited and narrow.

That said, smart people often seem like crazy people to stupid people, to be very blunt. It is enormously relieving to have, if nothing else, a water cooler to hang around and talk with people who understand the things that you do, and have similar values to your own.

But it is also true that the hottest fires make the strongest steel, metaphorically speaking. If you want to be comfortable and at ease, then by all means, stay in your comfort zone and only associate with those who agree with you. But if you want to grow, then you need to associate with those who see things differently and will challenge your point of view.

 

[twocows]

I think you're misrepresenting this whole thing. "High IQ" people interact with "low IQ" people all of the time. It's the default state of interaction. Groups like these aren't about "compartmentalizing relationships," they're just groups of people getting out and meeting new people based on some commonly used metric of intelligence. And whatever you think of IQ tests in particular, there's nothing wrong with people of similar interests getting together and talking (in this case, the interest is smart people). And as far as I know, that group doesn't hold eschewing lower-IQ friends as a requirement, so the question of avoidance seems irrelevant here.

I don't know if I agree with using IQ as the basis for this kind of thing (I really have no idea whether IQ is a worthwhile measurement or not), but this seems like the kind of thing people complain about when they have too much time on their hands. If you don't like their "smart people club," then form your own club with your own goals. At least in the US, people are free to associate in private with whomever they choose, and this means they can exclude you if they want.

Now, if someone does avoid you purely because you didn't score high on some test of intelligence, then they're probably just a jerk. That's also their prerogative.

 

[Corvus of the Black Night]

You mean like MENSA, right? I mean I don't really care, it's not like they separate themselves from others, really. Besides, you should be judging people on a single person, not based on a society they may be a member of, especially when said society is unified only in that they scored well on a test.