Are Women Smarter Than Men?

By on March 4, 2010 • Topics: Current Affairs

pictures from: thenonconsumeradvocate.com

“Are men smarter than women?” It seems time has quickly changed, and the more popular question asked now is: “Are women smarter than men?” A quick Google search on “Are women…” will immediately result in millions of sites offering a wide variety of answers.

What do I believe? I believe what I see. In high school, the top performers in my AP classes were all female. Outside of class? They dominated many of the clubs on campus. At UC Irvine, it seemed like women were more frequently at the top of the bell curve. At Harvard, women play a huge role in research and leadership. The president of Harvard University is a woman.

British researcher and professor of psychology at the University of College, London analyzed some 30 studies to show that men and women are fairly equal overall in terms of IQ. (Newsweek Report 2008). How do these trends hold up in the job market?

Girl Power-house in the US (Entrepreneur, March 2010)

The recession has been bad news for many as unemployment rates remain high. But for the first time in history, the male unemployment rate topped the female unemployment rate. December statistics show that 10.2% of men were unemployed versus 8.2% of women. At the peak of the recession, 82% of the employees laid off were men.

Surprised? Read on…

Women are positioned to soon become the majority of the work force. They start businesses at twice the rate of men. The Center for Women’s Business Research reports that the current economic impact of women-owned firms equal $3 trillion and these firms employ 16% of all U.S. workers–a number that’s expected to rise when the economy recovers.

Convinced? Read on…

A study by Guardian Life Small Business Research Institute, women-led companies will generate as many as 5.5 million new jobs in the US by 2018. Institute director Mark Wolf states,”[Women] are more intense about paying employees well and providing better healthcare”.

The Landscape in Vietnam?

A report by the organization, Onlinewomeninpolitics.com, states that the status and position of women in Vietnam have improved significantly in the last half century. In 1992, women had a high degree of literacy (84% vs. 93% for men). In 2002, the Vietnam Women’s Union, a satellite organization of the Vietnam Communist Party, published statistics that claim women represented 59.2% of all healthcare workers, 70.1% of employees in education and training sector, and 34.7% in show business and sports. The report also states that 43.7% of university graduates and 24.5% of post-graduates are women (Vietquoc.com)

Is the social landscape really changing? Are women receiving equal opportunities as men? Are you surprised by the statistics?

The Author: Brian Luong

Brian Luong is the editor-in-chief of Vietnam Talking Points. Brian is currently pursuing a DMD-MBA joint degree program at Harvard School of Dental Medicine and Harvard Business School in Boston, Massachusetts. Extended Bio.

  • http://facebook.com/profile.php?id=30608635 Nha-Khanh Bui

    Sure. As Annie Oakley sang in that one musical, anything he could do, SHE could do better.But srsly? I do think that women have made great strides, overall, in the public sphere. But the reports mentioned in this note aren't specific in their statistics and overlook the fact that gender gaps continue to run prevalent in every society.The fact is that worldwide, women are paid less than men– and on average, only earn two thirds of what men make. In developing countries, the majority of economically driven women participate in the informal sector whereas men dominate the formal sector. Women make a living doing handiwork, for example, and make up the majority of subsistence agricultural workers. In industrialized countries, women tend to work in occupations rooted in traditional gender roles, which offer lower wages and benefits. Worldwide, women make up the majority of primary teachers; in contrast, men commonly hold positions as associate and full-time professors. In the developing world, literacy rates of women are also lower in comparison to men's. Those are just a few examples!Trends reveal that at increasingly higher levels in education and work, there's a drastic reduction in female representation. So while women are positioned to make the "majority of the workforce" and whatnot, as this note states, the positions they (will) hold are inferior in rank to those that men occupy. Men are typically concentrated at the upper crust of society. Because of that remarkable disparity, the answer is "no", women are not "receiving equal opportunities as men."I was once told that out of every place on the planet, women's status is the highest in Southeast Asia. That would be an optimistic sign for Vietnam's future, but I don't know how much of that is true. Can anyone confirm?

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  • http://facebook.com/profile.php?id=20395 Isabella Nga Lai

    Wow, Nha-Khanh, I really enjoyed reading your comment. You know a lot on this topic! Brian, great job on your article!I have no idea if women truly have higher status in Southeast Asia at the current moment. I would assume many would say so due to the fact that there has always been a long history of matriarchal societies in Southeast Asia. For Vietnam, the strong matriarchal heritage has helped retain female voice and identity. Nevertheless, this doesn't mean a feminine movement shouldn't occur. If you guys want, you should read about Gender Equality and Women's Issues in Vietnam here: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=964659I truly believe there is a imbalance in female to male representation in leadership positions. A recent Harvard Business Review article details this very well: http://hbr.org/2010/03/women-in-management-delusions-of-progress/ar/1

  • http://facebook.com/profile.php?id=30608635 Nha-Khanh Bui

    Wow, if I hadn't decided to scroll through the note archives, I would've never seen your comment! Fb never notified me of it for some reason. Anyway, I'm surprised someone even read my comment 'cause it's so long… hahaha :) Thanks Isabella.Interesting and informative links! I agree on both your points :)

  • Tuan

    Women and Men are about the same. Albeit, Men tend to leverage their knowledge more often, are more assertive, and as a result take more chances. The correlation of intelligence to career success isn’t a one-to-one ratio, but rather a variety of behavioral traits and components need to be factored in.

  • asdsdfsd

    Being a man, I can say that you can’t generalize like that, its practically to do so.

    Even though there are scientific studies which tell that men are smarter than women, I don’t agree with them.

    Your example of women in research is also weak because there are not many women who have won nobel prize for technical things.

    My understanding is that, intelligence is not dependent on sex, because it is dependent on brain and believe it or not, except for the reproductive system and associated organs, all the other organs are same in men and women.

    It is clear that to be logically very strong, decisions should not be based on emotions.

    Women are more emotional than men due to the hormones, especially during those days.

    So pretty frankly anyone who can make clear cut decisions is the winner, be it man or women.

    Waiting to read your reply on this.

  • http://www.facebook.com/dave.surath Dave Surath

    they still act crazy

  • Tbonehampton

    Check the most recent scientific studies—just do a simple search and ask the question.  New studies show that men on average have a higher I.Q. than women (about 4 points).  This is causing quite a stir.  However, this article is flawed in its conclusion because it is based on participation and comformance to academic structure and expectations  (which women are better at) and not on actual problem solving, spacial relationships etc., that are measured in the I.Q. test.  So chock one up for men.  We could use a boost after decades of social and media influences bent on elevating women while simultaneously degrading the male image.