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The Bell Curve, published in 1994, was written by Richard Herrnstein and Charles Murray as a work designed to explain, using empirical statistical analysis, the variations in intelligence in American Society, raise some warnings regarding the consequences of this intelligence gap, and propose national social policy with the goal of mitigating the worst of the consequences attributed to this intelligence gap. Many of the assertions put forth and conclusions reached by the authors are very controversial, ranging from the relationships between low measured intelligence and anti-social behavior, to the observed relationship between low African-American test scores (compared to whites and Asians) and genetic factors in intelligence abilities.

Part 1 - The Cognitive Elite

Part 1 (Chapters 1-4) describes the intelligence stratification of American society and the resulting emergence of a "Cognitive Elite". The essential conclusions of this Part of the book are that more intelligent (higher measured IQ) Americans are selected for college, and end up in fewer professions; American society is becoming cognitively stratified, with the Cognitive Elite crossing paths rarely with those of lower cognitive abilities. In the last half of the twentieth century, more and more Americans have been getting college degrees. College graduates have been funneled into a selective few occupations, especially for the brightest of the bright. The authors assert that more intelligent employees are more proficient employees, so that even among high-IQ professions like law, the highest IQ persons end up at the top. In addition, the authors argue that IQ tests could be the most important indicator of potential employee success, and therefore should be allowable as an input to the hiring process. A final point is made with respect to earnings based on cognitive ability. Since the cognitive elite are more proficient, they make more money, live in different areas, and send their children to different schools, churches, stores, etc. This leads directly to physical separation from the rest of society. 

Part 2 - IQ and Social Problems

Part 2 (Chapters 5-12) of the book addresses social groups at the low end of the cognitive ability spectrum. Assertions are made, and conclusions reached, concerning the propensity of people involved in anti-social or otherwise undesirable behavior or situations to be below average when measured for cognitive ability. The conclusions reached are summarized as follows:

• Poverty - Low IQ is a strong precursor of poverty, even more so than the socioeconomic conditions in which people grow up. 

• Schooling - Low IQ raises the likelihood of dropping out of school before completing high school, and decreases the likelihood of attaining a college degree. 

• Unemployment, Idleness and Injury - Low IQ is associated with persons who are unemployed, injured often, or idle (removed themselves from the workforce). 

• Family Matters - Low IQ correlates with high rates of divorce, lower rates of marriage, and higher rates of illegitimate births, 

• Welfare Dependency - Low IQ increases the chances of chronic welfare dependency. 

• Parenting - Low IQ of mothers correlates with low birth weight babies, a child's poor motor skill and social development, and children's behavioral problems from age 4 and up. 

• Crime - Low IQ increases the risk of criminal behavior. 

• Civility and Citizenship - Low IQ people vote least and care least about political issues.

Part 3 - IQ and Race

Part 3 (Chapters 13 - 17) addresses issues of a national focus, turning attention to cognitive and social behavioral differences between racial and ethnic groups. The controversy surrounding these topics, and the incredibly complex nature of the comparisons being made is acknowledged by the authors from the outset; the reader is cautioned to "read carefully". The assertions and conclusions reached in this part of The Bell Curve include the following:

• Ethnic Differences in Cognitive Ability - East Asians typically earn higher IQ scores than white Americans, especially in the verbal intelligence areas. African-Americans typically earn IQ scores one full standard deviation below those of white Americans. The IQ difference between African-Americans and whites remains at all levels of socioeconomic status (SES), and is even more pronounced at higher levels of SES. Recent narrowing of the average IQ gap between black and white Americans (about 3 IQ points) is attributed to a lessening of low black scores and not an overall improvement in black scores on average. The debate over genes versus environment influences on the race IQ gap is acknowledged. 

• The Demography of Intelligence - Mounting evidence indicates that demographic trends are exerting downward pressure on the distribution of cognitive ability in the United States and that the pressures are strong enough to have social consequences. Birth rates among highly educated women are falling faster than those of low IQ women. The IQ of the average immigrant of today is 95, lower than the national average, but more importantly the new immigrants are less brave, less hard working, less imaginative, and less self-starting than many of the immigrant groups of the past. 

• Social Behavior and the Prevalence of Low Cognitive Ability - For most of the worst social problems of our time, the people who have the problem are heavily concentrated in the lower portion of the cognitive ability spectrum. Solutions designed to solve or mitigate any of these problems must accommodate, even be focused towards, the low cognitive ability profile if they are to have any hope of succeeding.

Part 4 - IQ and Social Policy

Part 4 (Chapters 17 - 22) focuses on the idea that we must all live together in this country of diverse cognitive ability, just as we must all live together in this nation of diverse racial and ethnic background. All major domestic issues that we address must include a component that takes into account the predominant cognitive levels of the target population. For example, if we want to implement a training program for unemployed men, we should realize that fully half of the target group will have measured IQ below 80.

• Raising Cognitive Ability - If it were possible to significantly, consistently, and affordably raise intelligence, many of the negative consequences of societal low IQ could be mitigated or removed. The one intervention that has consistently worked to raise intelligence is adoption form a bad family environment into a good one. The authors recommend that children born to single mothers with low cognitive ability be voluntarily given up for adoption. 

• The Leveling of American Education - As American education has been "dumbed down" to accommodate the average and below average students, the gifted students have been allowed to slide by without developing their true potential. The authors recommend that some federal education funds be shifted from disadvantaged programs to gifted programs, and that the federal government encourage parental choice in education through voucher programs, public school choice programs, or tax credits for education. A final recommendation is for educators to once again view as one of the chief purposes of our educational system to educate the gifted because the future of society depends on them, an education that fosters wisdom and virtue through the ideal of the "educated man". 

• Affirmative Action in Higher Education -The cost of affirmative action in higher education includes the psychological consequences of students admitted under affirmative action programs, at lower cognitive ability levels, being seen as a low proportion of the overall student population, but a high proportion of the students doing poorly in school. This can lead to increased racial animosity and the high black dropout rate on American campuses. The authors recommend a color-blind affirmative action, giving preference to members of disadvantaged groups when qualifications are similar. 



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