Studies show that atheists are more intelligent than religious people
Everyone is entitled to freely practice their religion, or lack thereof, but there often comes the question as to who is right.
While this may be a question which never cohesively gets agreed upon, studies on the differences between atheists and religious folk have been conducted to answer other questions, and there is one answer which stands out among 63 studies.
According to multiple experiments, atheists are more intelligent than religious people.
"Atheists are more intelligent than religious people, according to study." pic.twitter.com/6EFgA2aZkG
— Linwood Storm (@ElectronicJack) May 14, 2017
A meta-analysis, which is a statistical study that looks at the results of multiple other studies and analyses them to get a conclusive result, was done using the results of different 63 studies.
This analysis showed that people who have a devotion to religion have a lower association to intelligence.
The meta-analysis defined intelligence as 'the ability to reason, plan, solve problems, think abstractly, comprehend complex ideas, learn quickly and learn from experience.'
Miron Zuckerman, Jordan Silberman and Judith A. Hall conducted the study, which proved that the association between the two concepts was strongest among university students and weakest in kids and teens.
The study speculates that the reason for the association with intelligence and religion in university is because atheism might be considered to be a form of nonconformity in societies where the majority is religious, with more intelligent people being drawn to free thinking.
There was also a stronger association for religious beliefs than religious behaviour, so people who follow and appreciate religious teachings but don't practice were seen by the meta-analysis to be more intelligent.
Ageing was another interesting aspect of the study, as with age comes a boding sense of ones own mortality, which can lead to a deepening of religious beliefs.
The study showed that in the highest intelligence bracket, those in the age group of 75+ still did not show a significant increase in religiosity.
@Independent When they challenge God Almighty their intelligence is good enough to guide them to Hell Fire. They are the most illiterate
— . (@usaf213) May 16, 2017
The results of the study have caused a heated debate on Twitter, with those who hold deep religious beliefs finding the conclusion to be insulting.
'Nobody becomes smarter by becoming atheists. A brain does not grow just for abandoning religion,' said one.
However, others feel that the results of the study are accurate.
