A little quiz for those in the gifted/genius IQ range

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anitram said:
2. Yes, and there is a particular relationship that has forced my hand in this respect. And I think that regardless of its outcome, it has been a very good thing for me so far.
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Well, that's good anyway.

anitram said:
Less happy in the sense that I was indecisive about what I wanted to do with my life (sometimes having too many options is not a good thing).
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Yeah I have that thing too. I still haven't properly addressed it. Actually very few people in my experience do what you have done what you have done and I admire you for it. The only example I can think of off the top of my head is someone who was in my year in college and having graduated then went and retrained to become a pharmacist.

I don't know why more people don't seek to excel in different areas, I suppose it's a lack of confidence. People talk about doing MBA's and the like to effect a career change, but that isn't a freaking career change, it's just obtaining a piece of parchment to advance to a different level of corporate bullshit and have longer meetings.
 
I've watched other shows about Chris Langan and he comes across as extrememly disfunctional and arrogant. I was surprised that video showed him in a pleasant light
 
financeguy said:
My questions are:

(1) Do you view yourself as having poor EQ (emotional intelligence)?
(2) If yes to (1), have you/are you taking steps to rectify this?
(3) Do you perceive your giftedness as having made you happier than those less gifted, or is the obverse true?
(4) Do you struggle with addictive behaviour patterns?
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i have no idea what my IQ is. i do know that i was put in the gifted program when i was in 4th grade, and i always tested highly on standardized tests including the SATs, though i will say that my grades did fluctuate a bit from grades 8-10, mostly due to me being an adolescent shit for a while.

how do people know their IQs? i was never told.

1. no. i think my EQ is pretty good.

3. i think that both are true for me, though i would say that being a reflective, thoughtful person probably isn't tied to IQ. being reflective and thoughtful can lead one to find tremendous sadness in the world and an awareness of what one gives up when one makes decisions, as well as the limitations placed upon all of us by circumstances out of our control. however, being curious and confident has led me to meet fascinating people and, more importantly, to have the courage to take risks that have led me to amazing places and experiences.

4. yes. there have been points in my life when i've question as to whether or not i was actually addicted (or, more accurately, developing an addiction) to various things, though i've never, ever had a clearly defined "problem" as such. i know that i have this potential within me, and i'm able to monitor myself and i fully understand how important my health is, and i trust myself to know when to end whatever behavior might result in addiction. however, were my life to go significantly off the rails, i think i would be someone at risk for addiction to whatever substance or activity might fill the void.

i also think that an addictive personality, when carefully monitored, is a positive thing. the world needs more people consumed by passion for food, love, life, sex, travel, etc. it's a fine line between passion/obsession/addiction.
 
Irvine511 said:
how do people know their IQs? i was never told.

i also think that an addictive personality, when carefully monitored, is a positive thing. the world needs more people consumed by passion for food, love, life, sex, travel, etc. it's a fine line between passion/obsession/addiction.
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In my case, an IQ test was a requirement to enter school early. From what I'm gathering about a good chunk of the others who have answered, they were also tested for their school's gifted programs. Technically, the most accurate tests are administered by psychologists, though, of course, the accuracy of any test's ability to measure somebody's intelligence is up for serious debate.

I wholeheartedly agree with that as well. More accurately put, I have a deep passion for music, which nothing else in my life has come close to matching. To me, addiction is when passion for something becomes damaging to oneself.
 
Well, to be fair to my school, they didn't tell me the score, they told my mom, who subsequently told me in my teenage years. I am glad I didn't know for a good amount of time, but at the same time, it was a comfort of sorts to finally know in high school, I guess.
 
financeguy said:
(1) Do you view yourself as having poor EQ (emotional intelligence)?
(2) If yes to (1), have you/are you taking steps to rectify this?
(3) Do you perceive your giftedness as having made you happier than those less gifted, or is the obverse true?
(4) Do you struggle with addictive behaviour patterns?
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1) I used to be wacked, but over the past 2 years, I've calmed down a lot. I took a EQ test not too long ago and I got a good score

2) Yeah, I'm still growing

3) I don't know if I have a high IQ; I was never tested. But I believe happiness could only be found in loved ones and within yourself

4) The internet
 
Irvine511 said:
how do people know their IQs? i was never told.
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I was tested by the school board in order to be moved into a gifted program and my parents received the scores. Truth be told I don't remember the exact number anymore, though my Mom thinks it was 146.

My grandfather has tested with a significantly higher IQ than that (and he has very close to a non-existent EQ in my opinion - though he is a wonderful person).
 
onebloodonelife said:
Well, to be fair to my school, they didn't tell me the score, they told my mom, who subsequently told me in my teenage years. I am glad I didn't know for a good amount of time, but at the same time, it was a comfort of sorts to finally know in high school, I guess.
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That's exactly what they (the school and my mother) did for me. She left it at "somewhere between 130 and 180" (a laughably large range) up until I was about 17.
 
I was never tested as a kid. I can see how segregating kids out on the single dimension of IQ might compromise developing in other critical areas like social, physical and emotional abilities.

As an undergrad I considered going on to do an MBA so I took the GMAT. My score would have qualified me for ivy league. I was already doing a b.comm so I figured an MBA was overkill so I didn't bother. I was already working full-time and burnt out with school so continued working.

Later on I was a candidate for a Fortune 100 company who sent me to an industrial psychologist for a full day of testing and in-depth interviews. I agreed on the condition that I receive all results and reports. I was offered the position.
 
I don't think I ever did a formal IQ test as such at school, we did aptitude testing in secondary school and I know I was in the top 1% for all the aptitude tests except spatial awareness and clerical.

Around 6 years ago I did a bunch of online IQ tests and scored in the 132-140 range which is not bad for a semi-functional alcoholic.
 
Were you looking specifically to see if people with higher IQs tend to have more problems with addiction?
 
I have not been diagnosed as OCD because I haven't displayed any debilitating habits, however, I have signs of having OCD. I'm considered a "checker" in that I constantly make sure things are on or off that are supposed to be, locked or unlocked that are supposed to be, excessively checking my pockets to make sure I have what I need, etc. I also have had constant earworms for about three years.

Is this in any way related to my genius IQ? I have no idea. I've actually never thought about it. I've never known IQ to be any type of indicator for OCD.
 
phillyfan26 said:
excessively checking my pockets to make sure I have what I need, etc.
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huh. i do that. however, when i was in school the pants design meant that if your thigh passed the horizontal everything in your pockets would spill out, so i got used to making sure i hadn't lost everything just by sitting down and i guess i've continued the habit.
 
coolian2 said:
huh. i do that. however, when i was in school the pants design meant that if your thigh passed the horizontal everything in your pockets would spill out, so i got used to making sure i hadn't lost everything just by sitting down and i guess i've continued the habit.
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I'm usually wearing jeans, so things aren't falling out usually. I'm generally checking to make sure I didn't leave it in my room, even though I've checked ten times already.

I could just be neurotic.
 
phillyfan26 said:
I'm usually wearing jeans, so things aren't falling out usually. I'm generally checking to make sure I didn't leave it in my room, even though I've checked ten times already.

I could just be neurotic.
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i put that kind of thing down to me being neurotic too, since i pretty much live in jeans now. it's the more likely answer. and to follow on from a point made earlier, even if it isn't, who needs the label of ocd if it isn't negatively impacting your daily life?
 
onebloodonelife said:
In my case, an IQ test was a requirement to enter school early. From what I'm gathering about a good chunk of the others who have answered, they were also tested for their school's gifted programs. Technically, the most accurate tests are administered by psychologists, though, of course, the accuracy of any test's ability to measure somebody's intelligence is up for serious debate.
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I haven't had mine tested since before high school. I was in gifted programs in elementary school, and have scored well on online tests.

Regarding IQ tests in general, I think it's a more accurate indicator for kids than adults. e.g. Mensa members have all types of occupations, including barbers, postal workers, and plumbers. The fact that IQ score is not generally used past adolescence (for college admissions, jobs, etc.) bears this out.
 
phillyfan26 said:
I'm usually wearing jeans, so things aren't falling out usually. I'm generally checking to make sure I didn't leave it in my room, even though I've checked ten times already.

I could just be neurotic.
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Freaky. I have that too. But for me it's because I'm so scatterbrained I make sure I didn't forget anything.

My keys are all on one chain and have a little cat bell on them so I know I have them when I hear the bell. Sort of conditioning myself, if I feel something's wrong, it's usually that I don't hear a bell and I pat my pockets for my keys.

And when I get unsure whether I did check something or not, I'll check it again. Even if I'm fairly sure I did check it.



And I didn't get tested for IQ in school, though I did have the highest scores on the final test in our primary school(age 10-11). I took a test later in highschool, it was none too serious yet I don't remember the exact circumstances. We used some computer program and in the end you got your score.
 
financeguy said:
Yeah that was kind of the point. Result: inconclusive.
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I just found this by googling: Study Finds Link between High Childhood IQ and Adult Alcohol Use

I don't know that I have an addictive personality per se, but I do seem to have a high degree of single-mindedness, or tunnel vision. As for drinking, there probably have been times where I've drank a bit more than I'm comfortable with (never daily or anything, my personal definition is anything more than once a week), but never to the extent that it's become a problem in other areas of my life. But by the same token, I've also gone long periods without drinking - never consciously, I've never said to myself that I need to cut down or stop, I just find myself not bothering.

I do find though that I can become so wrapped up in something, whether it be work, school, a hobby, etc, that I spend far more hours at it than I planned to, and then sometimes I resent the outside forces that pull me away from whatever I'm focussed on. Maybe that's related to addiction? Or obsessive behaviour?

Whatever the case, good luck, I hope you find the answers you're looking for.

Eta - I might as well answer your other questions, too.

As for EQ, I think I'm fairly high in it, in that I can often read people and situations very well. I think that I don't always respond appropriately, though. If the need is genuine, then yes, but I've found that lately I have little tolerance for others' BS or drama, and I refuse to get caught up in it. That's probably more a factor of where I am in life rather than IQ, though.

Happiness - there's a phenomenon that's been studied called depressive realism, whereby those who are mildly depressed have a more accurate view of the degree of control they have over their environments than those who are not depressed, or those who are clinically depressed. Anecdotally, I've found that many whom I'd say fit into this category are intelligent, thoughtful and introspective. I tend to find with myself that my moods do fit the situation, and if I'm unhappy, then it's because I have reason to be. I can't really say conclusively that my happiness (or not) is related to IQ, it's probably just as much related to other factors.
 
VintagePunk said:
I do find though that I can become so wrapped up in something, whether it be work, school, a hobby, etc, that I spend far more hours at it than I planned to, and then sometimes I resent the outside forces that pull me away from whatever I'm focussed on. Maybe that's related to addiction? Or obsessive behaviour?
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I wouldn't view that as addiction per se. That sounds to me like fairly normal behaviour for an INTJ!

VintagePunk said:
Whatever the case, good luck, I hope you find the answers you're looking for.
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Thanks.
 
financeguy said:
The News Record - Researchers Suggest IQ, Alcohol Correlation



Wow.
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Interesting. I suspect it may have something to do with an adult disappointment with the banality of much of what is everyday life versus what was previously the super-curiosity of a very intelligent child. But it may be dangerous to chalk up one's addictive behavior to high native intelligence. It's too romantic.

By the way Finance Guy, my apologies for my smart arse remarks on a previous page. I read all of your threads with interest.
 
I can't speak for everyone (and I'm not in the super genius category anyway) but a predisposition to alcohol, which need not necessarily mean out of control addiction, merely mildly frisky addiction, isn't always about drowning one's sorrows. I think as Financeguy maybe is alluding, it ties in with a compulsive sort of personality.
 
i guess i qualify enough to answer this :madspit:

(1) Do you view yourself as having poor EQ (emotional intelligence)?
a little, i guess. i used to be pretty extroverted when i was younger. my personality totally changed when i moved here in 95. i'm a little better about things now, but i'd still much rather sit and quietly observe life, i guess you could say. for example, someone could be sitting talking to me, pouring their heart out and telling me some horrible story, and i just sit there listening, not really sure what to say. i'm not sure if that's poor eq or not, though.

(2) If yes to (1), have you/are you taking steps to rectify this?
i try. that's all anyone can do, i guess.

(3) Do you perceive your giftedness as having made you happier than those less gifted, or is the obverse true?
i don't view myself as any different than anyone else. well, that's not entirely true. i have been accused of acting like i'm better than everyone, constantly mocking or looking down upon people i see every day doing stupid things. thinking of that though, i guess that'd make me less happy.

(4) Do you struggle with addictive behaviour patterns?
i definitely try not to get addicted to anything, but it's not a real effort. i just make sure to prevent addiction by only taking the amount of pills prescribed to me for anything, not drinking in excess too often, etc. i don't smoke so that's not an issue. for lots of reasons, i just try my absolute best to avoid ever being addicted to anything.

coolian2 said:
huh. i do that. however, when i was in school the pants design meant that if your thigh passed the horizontal everything in your pockets would spill out, so i got used to making sure i hadn't lost everything just by sitting down and i guess i've continued the habit.
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yeah, these days you just dump it all in my purse. :grumpy:
 
Kieran McConville said:
I can't speak for everyone (and I'm not in the super genius category anyway) but a predisposition to alcohol, which need not necessarily mean out of control addiction, merely mildly frisky addiction, isn't always about drowning one's sorrows. I think as Financeguy maybe is alluding, it ties in with a compulsive sort of personality.
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.

I understand and agree. Yet there is a lot of ground to cover between "out of control addiction" and "merely mildly frisky addiction". The term I'd like to use here is "alcohol dependence" (and I don't mean skid row dependence, but rather the inability to go through week after week of a high-functioning life without it). It seems hard to believe that someone who is high-functioning, but alcohol dependent, doesn't have some form of unhappiness or dissatisfaction with "life as it is" at the root of it.
 
sure but that goes hand in hand with the pleasure it can bring (yeah, I know the pleasure goes away when something becomes excessive).

I think dissatisfaction with things as they are, is probably felt keenly by anyone of more than knucklehead intelligence, to one degree or another. And so it would make some sense, sure, that the ultra-gifted might feel it all the more. Their curse might also be to miss the wood for the trees, sometimes. It is part of the human condition.
 
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