ArticlePloS one2018
65% of Americans believe they are above average in intelligence: Results of two nationally representative surveys.
Article in PloS one, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
8 citing papers in PubMed.
- Clinicians' practices and attitudes toward depression assessment: a cross-sectional survey study.BMC psychology · 2026Article
- Call it a conspiracy: How conspiracy belief predicts recognition of conspiracy theories.PloS one · 2024Article
- The influence of general knowledge test performance on self-ratings of and perceived relationships between intelligence, knowledge, and memory.Scientific reports · 2023Article
- Lay Definitions of Intelligence, Knowledge, and Memory: Inter- and Independence of Constructs.Journal of Intelligence · 2023Article
- Are sex differences in self-estimated intelligence an elusive phenomenon? Exploring the role of working memory, creativity, and other psychological correlates in young and older adults.Brain and behavior · 2023Article
- Conformity, obedience, and the Better than Average Effect in health professional students.Canadian medical education journal · 2022Article
- Less-Intelligent and Unaware? Accuracy and Dunning-Kruger Effects for Self-Estimates of Different Aspects of Intelligence.Journal of Intelligence · 2022Article
- Correlates of Self-Estimated Intelligence.Journal of Intelligence · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Psychologists often note that most people think they are above average in intelligence. We sought robust, contemporary evidence for this "smarter than average" effect by asking Americans in two independent samples (total N = 2,821) whether they agreed with the statement, "I am more intelligent than the average person." After weighting each sample to match the demographics of U.S. census data, we found that 65% of Americans believe they are smarter than average, with men more likely to agree than women. However, overconfident beliefs about one's intelligence are not always unrealistic: more educated people were more likely to think their intelligence is above average. We suggest that a tendency to overrate one's cognitive abilities may be a stable feature of human psychology.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.