Over 2000 students completed three short questionnaires in which they rated their general and multiple intelligence, their attractiveness and personality using a shortened measure of the Big Five. They also provided information about their weight, height, religious and political beliefs. A series of regression was performed with self-rated intelligence and attractiveness as the criterion variable. Females scored higher on Neuroticism and Agreeableness and lower on Openness, Self-estimated IQ and attractiveness. Regressions for self-estimated IQ and Attractiveness showed a similar pattern: Conscientious, Disagreeable, Extraverted, Lower BMI males gave higher scores. Regressions for the different “multiple intelligences” showed that four (Logical, Spatial, Interpersonal, Spiritual) of the nine predictor variables accounted for 10 or more percent of the variance. For the “Academic intelligences” results showed that Conscientious, Open, Extraverted males gave higher scores. Implications and limitations are considered.
KeywordsSelf Assessed IntelligenceAttractivenessBig Five Personality VariablesGenderBMI
Ackerman, P., & Wolman, S. (2007). Determinants and Validity of Self-Estimates of Ability and Self-Concept Measures. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied, 13, 57-78. https://doi.org/10.1037/1076-898X.13.2.57
Bale, C., & Archer, J. (2013). Self-Perceived Attractiveness, Romantic Desirability and Self-Esteem. Evolutionary Psychology, 11, 68-84. https://doi.org/10.1177/147470491301100107
Freund, P. H., & Kasten, N. (2012). How Smart Do You Think You Are? A Meta-Analysis on the Validity of Self-Estimates of Cognitive Ability. Psychological Bulletin, 138, 296-321. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0026556
Furnham, A. (2000). Parents’ Estimates of Their Own and Their Children’s Multiple Intelligence. British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 18, 583-594. https://doi.org/10.1348/026151000165869
Furnham, A. (2001). Self-Estimates of Intelligence: Culture and Gender Differences in Self and Other Estimates of General (G) and Multiple Intelligences. Personality and Individual Differences, 31, 1381-1405. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0191-8869(00)00232-4
Furnham, A., & Bunclark, K. (2006) Sex Differences in Parents’ Estimations of Their Own and Their Children’s Intelligence. Intelligence, 34, 1-14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.intell.2005.05.005
Furnham, A., & Fukumoto, S. (2008). Japanese Parents’ Estimates of Their Own and Their Children’s Multiple Intelligence. Japanese Psychological Research, 50, 63-76. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-5884.2008.00362.x
Furnham, A., Tu, B.-L., & Swami, V. (2012b). Cross-Cultural Differences in Self-Assessed Intelligence: A Comparison of British and Chinese Undergraduates. Psychologia, 55, 21-27. https://doi.org/10.2117/psysoc.2012.21
Gabriel, M., Critelli, J., & Ee, J. (1994). Narcissistic Illusions in Self-Evaluations of Intelligence and Attractiveness. Journal of Personality, 62, 143-155. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6494.1994.tb00798.x
Gardner, H. (1999). Intelligence Refrained. New York, NY: Basic Books.
Ivcevic, Z., & Kaufman, J. (2013). The Can and Cannot Do Attitude: How Self-Estimates of Ability Vary across Ethnic and Socioeconomic Groups. Learning and Individual Differences, 27, 144-148. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2013.07.011
Judge, T. A., Hurst, C., & Simon, L. S. (2009). Does It Pay to Be Smart, Attractive, or Confident (or All Three)? Relationships among General Mental Ability, Physical Attractiveness, Core Self-Evaluations, and Income. Journal of Applied Psychology, 94, 742-755. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0015497
Kanazawa, S. (2011). Intelligence and Physical Attractiveness. Intelligence, 39, 7-14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.intell.2010.11.003
Kaufman, J. (2012). Self Estimates of General, Crystallized, and Fluid Intelligence in an Ethnically Diverse Population. Learning and Individual Differences, 22, 118-122. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2011.10.001
Langlois, J., Kalakais, L., Rubenstein, A., Larson, A., Hallam, M., & Smoot, M. (2000). Maxims or Myths of Beauty? A Meta-Analytic and Theoretical Review. Psychological Bulletin, 126, 390-423. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.126.3.390
Marsh, H., Parker, J., & Barnes, J. (1984). Multidimensional Self-Concepts. American Education Research Journal, 22, 422-444. https://doi.org/10.3102/00028312022003422
McManus, I. C. & Furnham, A. (2006). Aesthetic Activities and Aesthetic Attitudes. British Journal of Psychology, 97, 555-587. https://doi.org/10.1348/000712606X101088
Moore, F., Filippou, D., & Perrett, D. (2011). Intelligence and Attractiveness in the Face. Journal of Evolutionary Psychology, 11, 205-217. https://doi.org/10.1556/JEP.9.2011.3.2
Moutafi, J., Furnham, A., & Paltiel, L. (2004). Why Is Conscientiousness Negatively Correlated with Intelligence? Personality and Individual Differences, 37, 1013-1022.
Paulhus, D., Lysy, D., & Yik, M. (1998). Self-Report Measures on Intelligence: Are They Useful as Proxy IQ Tests. Journal of Personality, 66, 525-554. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-6494.00023
Perez, L., Gonzalez, C., & Beltran, J. (2010). Parental Estimates of Their Own and Their Relatives’ Intelligence. Learning and Individual Differences, 20, 669-676. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2010.09.005
Proyer, R. (2011). Being Playful and Smart? The Relations of Adult Playfulness with Psychometric and Self-Estimated Intelligence and Academic Performance. Learning and Individual Differences, 21, 463-467. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2011.02.003
Schlosser, T., Dunning, D., Johnson, K., & Kruger, J. (2013). How Aware Are the Unskilled? Journal of Economic Psychology, 39, 85-100.
Sternberg, R. (1997). Successful Intelligence. New York, NY: Plume.
Stieger, S., Kastner, C. K. Voracek, M., von Stumm, S., Chamorro-Premuzic, T., & Furnham, A. (2010). Independent Effects of Personality and Sex of Self-Estiumated Intelligence. Psychological Reports, 107, 553-563. https://doi.org/10.2466/04.07.09.PR0.107.5.553-563
Storek, J., & Furnham, A. (2012a). Gender and Gender Role Differences in Domain-Masculine Intelligence and Beliefs about Intelligence: A Study with Mensa UK Members. Personality and Individual Differences, 53, 890-895.
Storek, J., & Furnham, A. (2012b). Gender and Gender Role Differences in Domain-Masculine Intelligence and Beliefs about Intelligence. Personality and Individual Differences, 53, 890-898.
Swami, V., & Furnham, A. (2008). The Psychology of Physical Attraction. London: Routledge.
Swami, V., Furnham, A., Georgiages, C., & Pang, L. (2007) Evaluating Self and Partner Physical Attractiveness. Body Image, 4, 97-101. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2006.10.003
Swami, V., Waters, L., & Furnham, A. (2010). Perceptions and Meta-Perceptions of Self and Partner Physical Attractiveness. Personality and Individual Differences, 49, 811-814. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2010.06.011
Szymanowicz, A., & Furnham, A. (2011). Gender Differences in Self-Estimates of General, Mathematical, Spatial and Verbal Intelligence: Four Meta-Analyses. Learning and Individual Differences, 21, 493-504.
Von Stumm, S. (2013). Intelligence, Gender, and Assessment Method Affect the Accuracy of Self-Estimated Intelligence. British Journal of Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjop.12031
Von Stumm, S., Chamorro-Premuzic, T., & Furnham, A. (2009). Decomposing Self-Estimates of Intelligence: Structure and Sex Differences across 12 Nations. British Journal of Psychology, 100, 429. https://doi.org/10.1348/000712608X357876