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If he’s smart, he’s safe with your heart.
What brainiacs lack in swag — think “Steve Urkel,” of 1990s TV nerd fame, wearing goofy glasses and silly suspenders — they abound in stellar boyfriend characteristics. This, according to recent report on the sweet benefits of dating intelligent gents.
“The results of the present study suggest that lower general intelligence, and possibly lower fluid intelligence, is associated with undesirable outcomes for romantic relationships,” wrote researchers from Oakland University.
“Individuals with higher general intelligence can expect to enjoy more favorable life outcomes, including greater academic and workplace achievement, higher socioeconomic status, and increased life expectancy.”
To determine the significance of smarts in matters of the heart, academics surveyed 202 heterosexual men, ranging in age from 18 to 65, who’d been in a relationship for at least six months.
Investigators assessed their general intelligence — the ability to reason, solve problems, learn and understand complex ideas — with a battery of tests, including the “Letter and Number Series.”
Participants were given a series of letters and numbers, and challenged to identify the next position in each sequence.
“Results revealed that men’s general intelligence, and in particular, their performance on letter number series items, was negatively associated with a range of aversive, partner-directed behaviors,” per the findings.
Problematic tendencies such as berating their partners with “insults, sexual coercion, and cost-inflicting mate retention tactics,” as well as issues like “erectile dysfunction and psychopathy” were common in less intelligent men who struggled to correctly complete the letter and number sequences.
The analysts found that men who successfully solved the letter and number sequences possess high levels of fluid intelligence — the ability to reason, solve new problems, and adapt to unfamiliar situations without relying on prior knowledge.
“Fluid intelligence was positively associated with emotion perception, emotion understanding, and emotion management,” noted the insiders, referencing previous data with similar findings.
The Oakland University team also discovered that fellas with strong fluid intelligence were less likely to insult their girlfriends with comments like “I told my partner that she is fat,” become jealous or experience erectile dysfunction issues. Clever cats, too, displayed fewer psychopathic traits, and were less likely to resort to controlling “mate–retention” tactics, like making their partners feel guilty.
“The available literature suggests that fluid intelligence is related to the suppression of impulsive behaviors and mitigating undesirable life outcomes,” said the specialists before warning that the results of their “exploratory” study should be “interpreted with caution.”
“The exploratory nature of the present research means that we are unable to determine whether higher intelligence is the mechanism by which men better navigate relationship problems and achieve more desirable relationship outcomes,” they conceded.
“Additionally, the correlational nature of the present research means that we are unable to infer causal relationships between intelligence and relationship outcomes,” said the scientists. “Third, the present study included only men, so we are unable to generalize the results of the present study to women.”
“Given the potential importance of general intelligence and specific cognitive abilities in navigating relationship problems, future investigations should continue this line of research.”
Still, these researchers might be on to something.
Happy wives nationwide recently sparked the virtual “nerds make the best husbands” trend, bragging that their “Star Wars”-loving, “Harry Potter”-obsessed sweeties are at the top choices as lifelong lovers.
“Hear me loud and clear,” said a nerd-bride, “If he owns a lightsaber — green flag.”
