The Mouse Trap, Sandy Guatam’s excellent blog on cognitive and developmental psychology, discusses the correlation between a low IQ and poverty, and the implications thereof.
What are the implications for society of a more mechanistic understanding of the effects of childhood poverty on brain development? To different degrees, and in different ways, we regard children as the responsibility of both parents and society. Parents’ responsibility begins before birth and encompasses virtually every aspect of the child’s life. Society’s responsibility is more circumscribed.
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In my view the societal implications are far reaching, if low [socio-economic status] leads to lowered cognitive functioning, it becomes our duty to provide more cognitive stimulation and ensure that all children get sufficient social/emotional nurturance so that their IQ can flower to its full potential.
via Mind Hacks
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One response to “The Correlation Between Poverty and IQ”
Does this control for parental IQ? Low cognitive ability and low future time orientation are themselves causal factors in poverty. Cognitive ability is a quantitative heritable trait so would be transmitted to children via genes and environment.