Poll: Do you think you're more intelligent than the average person? (Be honest)

[Sir Thomas Sean Connery]

Two problems:

1) There is no "average" or "near average" option. There should be.

2) The users of this site actually ARE smarter than most, and therefor your bias test is a bit flawed.

 

[ToastiestZombie]

I don't know really. I'm way below average in stuff like maths and science. But then again that is only because I'm always in the highest sets in school. I reckon I'm above average when it comes to art and drama, two subjects that I excel at and have been asked a lot to do them for GCSEs. So I would say I'm above average for a 13 year old. But I'm way waaayyy below average than anyone above say 15.

 

[Lukeje]

Just a little experiment I thought up. Obviously only 50% of people can be above average in anything.

Ok, I've seen and heard this a hundred times and it's pissing me off that no one ever corrects it. That's not average, that's median. Only 50% of people can be above the median. If you have a hypothetical group of 90 people of nearly equal intelligence, then add 10 really stupid ones then 90% of the group will be above average. If you want to split them into the top 50% and the bottom 50% then you'd compare them to the median (which would be in between the 50th and 51st smartest).

This is only true if you assume that average means the arithmetic mean.
In this particular case I meant median. Both are perfectly acceptable methods of measuring the average of a dataset. Sorry about not being perfectly clear on that though.

Then why, presumably knowing that `average' is normally taken to mean the mean average, wouldn't you specify median in the OP?

 

[Just_A_Glitch]

I'd say I am just average, which is oddly missing from the poll. Perhaps if I applied myself a little more, I could reach the above average status, but I don't.

 

[dangoball]

I'm above average in intelligence. Mensa says so. I doubt I could honestly say that about many other aspects.

 

[Scarim Coral]

No middle ground as in I#m probably average?

Honestly I don't think I below average nor am I above it. Sure I somewhat know computer more than some people but I betting they know more stuff than I do on other stuff.

 

[Todd24ftw]

Well, I am a teenager, so it really isn't that hard to be above average for my generation.... Besides that, I go to a high-up College. So I guess I am above average

 

[ThreeWords]

I seem to be intelligent, at least compared to the people I meet and deal with on a daily basis, though whether that's because I have raw computational power, or just clearer/more effective ways of thinking about things, I shall never know. It probably comes out as the same thing.
I exhibit what seems to be a voracious mental apatite; it manifests as an urge to learn about the sciences, an obsession with maths, a wide-spectrum reading list and an addiction to puzzles. Sometimes I find I can't find enough stuff to test myself against, but that may just be boredom.
[sup]And I can't stop writing for the RP forum here, but that is probably evidence against me...[/sup]

If you care for IQ scores, I came in at 149 when I got tested by an educational psychologist. That said, this was a few years ago, and since such scores are known to deteriorate with age, I may have gone down since then, and it only proves that past-me was good at IQ tests.
[sup]She also found that I'm reasonably far down the aspergers spectrum. Which probably explains why I'm so damn smug.[/sup]

Abstract thought: Abstract thought isn't hard, and I find it irritating when people don't understand things.
Understanding: My understanding is rapid and comprehensive. Granted, the complexity of what I learn is limited by school and what books I can acquire, but rarely do I find that anything requires more than a second read-through.
Communication: This varies. I am verbally dexterous, and have no problem communicating in normal contexts. When I get to intellectual communication, I have a bad habit of skipping out parts of my thoughts that seem obvious; this is limiting to all but a few people, most of whom know me very well
Reasoning: I find much logic and mathematical argument to be easy; though I have no tolerance for formal logic [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mathematical_logic] since I have yet learn it.
Learning: Capacity for learning is proportional to interest; if i find something stimulating, my rate of ingestion becomes almost aggressive. I adore adding to the areas of knowledge which I find worthy.
Retaining: My mind is like a sieve; anything judged unworthy or uninteresting is discarded in favour of raw processing power. That said, my short term memory is excellent.
Planning: I am capable of coming up with complex, convoluted plans, which often require altering at the last minute. This is fine, within the boundaries mentioned in Communication.
Problem solving: Give me a problem, and I will attack it relentlessly until I have a solution. This can be a weakness; I dislike having to leave a problem unfinished.

 

[Jonluw]

abstract thought average, probably
understanding Understanding what, exactly? If it's about understanding new concepts, I'm slightly above average.
communication A wee bit above average in text. A bit below average verbally.
reasoning A bit above average.
learning Completely depends on what I'm supposed to learn. Above average potential in most subjects, I believe though. Whether I utilize this potential is a different matter.
retaining I have no idea what this is.
planning This I'm horrible at.
problem solving Probably absolutely average.

Oh, and I refuse to pick a poll option, seeing how limited they are.
Probably a bit above average. Not by a significant margin though.

 

[Kirke]

Seeing as normal IQ is one hundered, and I have last I checked 118. So yes.

 

[Yosato]

Well yeah, my IQ is 141, I'm good at maths and I've got a rather broad vocabulary despite my working class upbringing (which sounds odd with my accent). Honestly I don't think I'm being full of myself by saying it - if I am indeed smarter than the average person it's because I've earned it.

Having said that, my sense of direction and focus on doing mundane tasks are virtually non-existent. It's funny that the 'stupid' member of our group is the one who can put up the camping tent in like five minutes, whereas I probably wouldn't know where to begin.

 

[Whispering Cynic]

It really depends on who you compare yourself with, how you establish what "average" is. Compared to my high school peers, I'd say I was average, maybe a little above average in some aspects. But since my high school was pretty selective about the intelligence of people it takes in, I'd say we certainly weren't your typical sample of high school students.

I've taken a few tests, for Mensa and such, always came out high enough to get me in. Couldn't be bothered though, I'm lazy as hell and frankly, don't see the point in it.

 

[lionsprey]

Smarter then most of my friends? no.
But i am smarter then the average bear.

 

[Agow95]

I'm quite vain and in my opinion a majority of people in my year are idiots, so yeah I think I'm intelligent

 

[Tiberiu Paul Iordache]

Most people who know me tend to say I am quite intelligent, including my teachers and classmates. Even some people who don't know anything about me say that I have a look of an intelligent man.
I haven't decided if they're right or not.

 

[Cyberjester]

Remember, knowledge =/= intelligence. Living in a developed country and getting a good education does not make you inherently smarter, just more learned.
[cut]
And by "intelligence" I mean a general summation of ones abilities including abstract thought, understanding, communication, reasoning, learning, retaining, planning, and problem solving.

What you've named is all obtainable by knowledge. I can train myself to be better at problem solving, to memorise information better, to plan out scenarios better. Nothing you've listed is unreachable. Education == Intelligence. You do need a certain disposition of course, shunning a subject or activity because someone told you it was hard won't lead you to being the smartest person on earth. Curiosity? A passion for learning? Even that is can be trained though.

 

[Spectral Dragon]

Hmm... I HAVE been told to "Stop being so damn smart!" but that doesn't prove a lot. I think I'm above average, but I might be wrong. It IS possible that I'm, based on genetics, what you'd call a genius, but even if that's true, it doesn't matter a lot. It's still what you do with it that counts, and I'm lazy.

I'm considered smart, anyway, although some "average" are simply scary in how dumb they can be. That said, most people I know are pretty intelligent.

... I've rambled enough. I picked above average and I stick with it, for now.

 

[Trippy Turtle]

I got tested and have the IQ of a genius apparently but I just think I am good at problem solving which is a lot of what an IQ test is. So officially I am well above average but I believe I am just above average in certain areas like problem solving and thinking differently about things. If I had to do something like an essay I would have scored an 4.
Before someone asks my IQ is 156 and no I don't expect you to believe me and I don't really care what people make of it.
EDIT:I thought this looked like a good idea.

abstract thought: One of my strong points. I enjoy doing stuff involving this.
understanding: I can understand new concepts pretty well I guess if thats what this means.
communication: I'm pretty much rock bottom at this, I have a good volcabulary but otherwise completely hopeless.
reasoning: Reasoning as in nutting out a problem with reasoning? Then I'm good at it.
learning: I can learn things pretty easily if I find them interesting but otherwise my attention is lacking. Probably below average here.
retaining: Memory and stuff? I'm good at this if its just like just remembering concepts and formulas and stuff.
planning: 0/10 my plans are the ones you see the criminals in cartoons come up with. Doomed to fail even if it can pass as a real plan.
problem solving: Another one of my strong points. I love just sitting there and working out difficult problems and I'm good at it.

 

[Palademon]

I put above average.

I feel my opinions are well thought out, but who doesn't.
I am one of those people that will most likely tolerate anyone else's beliefs aslong as they don't affect people. And I'd say I'm creative, but not good at remembering lots of things, so my grades cna be a bit random, but I enjoy using knowledge that I learn.
And whenever people say someone's smart purely because they cna remember things I'm the first to point out that knowledge doesn't mean intelligence, more than intelligence can mean knowledge, like you well pointed out in the OP.
If we're going to use IQ as a support, even thoguh I think being naive enough to attempt measuring intelligence is very untillegent, my IQ is 132. I think 140 is considered genius, although I'm nto sure why that's the threshold.I took it at a learning assessment centre thta I was forced to go to because people are still convinced ADHD is something to 'suffer'. My brother's IQ is 136 so if IQs are accurate, he's more intelligent than me.
I was also on my school's gifted and talented register, although I think that's simply because I was in the top maths set so like the rets of the set, took maths GCSE a year early.