Cross-Cultural Comparison of Sex-Related Differences on Intelligence Tests

Abstract

Cross-cultural generalizability of the relation between sex and intelligence is examined by means of a meta-analysis of 189 studies. For this purpose, the statistical significance and the size of sex-related differences in cognitive factors corresponding to Thurstone's intelligence model are studied. Furthermore, the variance in significance and in size of the sex-intelligence relationship is investigated for five large clusters of cultures. Although, in general, the sex differences correspond to the literature findings, they are rather small. On some intelligence factors there are no appreciable differences between the clusters of cultures; on others significant differences are found, particularly between the African, Asian, and Western groups on the one hand and the Minorities and Western Reference groups on the other hand.