Intelligence is one of the most interesting psychological traits that exist. Knowing our cognitive abilities allows us to know the degree to which we are skilled at adapting to new challenges, changing environments and, in general, situations that require a certain degree of improvisation.
But another fascinating aspect of intelligence is that statistically it also tends to go hand in hand with many other personal, physical, social and psychological characteristics. For example, people with higher scores on IQ tests tend to live longer, earn more money, and look better.
In the world of love and finding a partner, this also has curious implications. For example, it has been seen that smarter people tend to be more unfaithful than the average, a pattern that is especially pronounced in the case of women. Why is this happening?
The relationship between intelligence and infidelity
A few years ago, psychologist Satoshi Kanazawa showed that, according to data from the General Social Surveys, people who answer “yes” to the question “Have you ever had an affair outside of your relationship?” They tend to obtain significantly higher scores on intelligence tests, even controlling for variables such as social class, ethnicity, educational level and, of course, age.
This difference was somewhat greater in the case of women. In their case, those who had committed infidelity were about 3 IQ points higher than those who had fulfilled their commitment, while in the case of men the difference was two points. Why does this happen?
Kanazawa acknowledges that there is no data that clearly indicates why there is a direct relationship between intelligence and propensity for infidelity, but he outlines some hypotheses that could point in the right direction.
Attractiveness, intelligence and gender
First of all, the researcher highlights a fact that has been amply proven over the years: in general, the most intelligent people tend to be taller and more attractive than the rest.
This means, among other things, that it is less difficult for them to find someone interested in having relationships with them. The stereotype of unattractive people who are very intelligent “to compensate” is not confirmed by the data that reality provides us, at least for now.
On the other hand, as an evolutionary psychologist, Kanazawa is convinced that, when it comes to sexual behavior, women have most of the power, since they are the ones who choose how and where encounters occur.
From here, Kanazawa outlines an interesting reflection. Although it may seem contradictory, more intelligent men tend to value monogamy and fidelity more, something that does not happen with representatives of the opposite sex with higher IQ. However, as we have seen, in practice both men and women with high intelligence scores are more likely to break that commitment to fidelity. This could be because women with higher IQ have more opportunities to be attractive and to break sexual exclusivity.
As for the latter, the fact that they value sexual exclusivity more could explain why even the most intelligent (and potentially attractive) tend to have fewer affairs. On the other hand, Kanazawa highlights that since men have less room for choice in sexual behavior, they cannot be as consistent with their ideals and values, under the assumption that to strictly follow one’s own values one needs to have a control in that area of life; in this case, the sexual one.
Thus, the hypotheses that Kanazawa points to have to do with the degree to which more intelligent people have to say “no” to a greater number of occasions to commit infidelities. Women with a higher IQ do not value sexual exclusivity more than the average, and are therefore somewhat more exposed to falling into temptation, while in men the desirability that is associated with intelligence is partially cushioned by their positive evaluation of monogamy in an “ideal” sense.
Of course, there are still many unknowns to be resolved. For example, whether this pattern of behavior, or relationship between IQ and sexual activity, holds true across cultures (probably not). It is also necessary to have more data about how sexual attractiveness and the propensity for infidelity are related: so far only data related to the latter and the level of IQ have been cross-referenced.
It is necessary to remember, finally, that we are only talking about numbers, about statistical patterns. It is clear that each case is unique and a person is not predestined to be unfaithful because they are gifted, far from it. However, in general, the smarter ones will likely have had more opportunities to say “no” to offers that seemed irresistible.
