Have thorough studies been done comparing
mental skills between cultures or nations?
Or is this too "politically incorrect"? :-(
How many distinct "dimensions" of mental skill
are separated in standard tests, e.g. math
skills, reading skills, common sense, etc.?
I am particularly interested in studies of
rural Central Thailand, and studies showing what
causes differences of average intelligence
between cultures. Diet? Lack of iodine?
Poor schools? Thai schools and Thai math and
language skills are all notoriously bad, but
Thais also tend to lack common-sense (e.g. their
purposelessly dangerous driving habits); can
this be blamed on schools? Is it due to a
vicious circle, young Thais learning (or rather
not learning) common sense from parents?
Have studies been done?
Obviously mental skills vary; indeed some Thais
have an admirable ability to cope with their
compatriots limitations, e.g. by phrasing leading
questions. With enough statistics one might
be able to determine whether Thais' mental
acuity follows a normal Bell-shaped curve but
with lower mean, or what correlations are at
work. Is the poor education system the cause of
systemic mental problems, or an effect?
Since the Thai apparent mental weakness manifests
itself in risk-taking and lack of simple courtesies,
perhaps it has a moral aspect.
Anecdotal evidence is generally rejected as,
at best, statistically insignificant but this
objection fails when there are *many* observers
each with *many* anecdotes. A general degradation
of mental skills in rural Central Thailand will
be obvious to any serious observer, but scientific
studies would be needed to correlate this degradation
by region, age, mental "dimension", etc. (I'd
provide specific anecdotal examples of Thai mental
impairment, but readers would rightfully reject
such evidence no matter how many "anecodotes"
are cited.)
The problem doesn't relate simply to "development."
Cambodia, for example, is poorer than Thailand, with
inferior governance, infrastructure and health service,
yet many visitors notice a strong difference in
mental acuity and curiosity between Cambodians
and Thais (or, at least, rural Central Thais).
I hope someone will provide information on multi-
dimensional IQ testing. I might volunteer to
translate such tests and do experiments in Central
Thailand.
No doubt, many readers of this message will think
I suffer from irrational racism. However it is
certain that no such detractor has significant
experience in (rural Central?) Thailand.
Johnny
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