National IQs -- 'How does your country measure up?'

Dec 11, 2005
Littlespeck.com
By RICHARD LYNN
University of Ulster, Coleraine, Northern Ireland, and TATU VANHANEN
University of Helsinki, Finland
Source

[...]
Countries with IQ of 100 or higher
107 - Hong Kong
106 - South Korea
105 - Japan
104 - Taiwan
102 - Austria, Italy, Germany, Netherlands
101 - Switzerland, Sweden, Luxembourg
100 - Belgium, China, New Zealand, Singapore. United Kingdom.

IQs 99 - 90
99 - Spain, Hungary, Poland,
98 - USA, Australia, Norway, France, Denmark
97 - Czech Republic, Canada, Finland
96 - Russia, Uruguay, Argentina, Slovakia
95 - Slovenia, Portugal94 - Israel, Romania
93 - Ireland, Armenia, Bulgaria
92 - Greece, Malaysia
91 - Thailand
90 - Turkey, Croatia, Peru, Croatia.

Some interesting extracts:

[...]
* There is a straightforward explanation for the positive association between IQ and incomes at both the individual and population level. The major reason for this association is that people with high IQs can acquire complex skills that command high earnings and that cannot be acquired by those with low IQs.

* Nations whose populations have high IQs tend to have efficient economies at all levels from top and middle management through skilled and semi-skilled workers. These nations are able to produce competitively goods and services for which there is a strong international demand and for which there is therefore a high value, and that cannot be produced by nations whose populations have low IQs.

* In addition, nations whose populations have high IQs will have intelligent and efficient personnel in services and public sector employment that contributes indirectly to the strength of the economy such as teachers, doctors, scientists and a variety of public servants responsible for the running of telephones, railroads, electricity supplies and other public utilities.

* Finally, nations whose populations have high IQs are likely to have intelligent political leaders who manage their economies effectively. Skilled economic management is required to produce the right conditions for economic growth, such as keeping interest rates at the optimum level to produce full employment with minimum inflation, maintaining competition, preventing the growth of monopolies, controlling crime and corruption, and promoting education, literacy and numeracy and vocational training.
[...]

Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.