Realistically, this shouldn’t be coming as a surprise to anyone.
As much as parenting is a joint effort, mums and dads across the land love to take credit for for some of their kids’ traits, whether this be sporting ability, humour, or musical talent.
But it turns out there is one that isn’t really up for debate – who children get their intelligence from.
Sorry dads, but chances are it’s not you, and there is a scientific explanation for this.
We’re all taught in science at school about chromosomes, and how females have XX chromosomes whilst males have XY chromosomes.
Well, multiple studies have shown that the X chromosome is responsible for carrying intelligence, meaning that females are twice as likely to pass down intelligence to their children than fathers are. A number of studies have reached this conclusion over the years, the Mirror reports.
‘Estimated that 40-60% of intelligence is hereditary’
One study at the Medical Research Council Social and Public Health Sciences Unit in Glasgow, revealed that kids’ IQs tend to be similar to their mothers’.
Researchers interviewed kids every year from the age of 14-22, taking into account various factors like education and socioeconomic status.
They found that the best predictor of intelligence in most scenarios was the child’s mother – and that the young people’s IQs were only around 15 points different from that of their mothers.
However, some disagree with the idea that mum’s are the ones who pass down intelligence, arguing that there are many more factors than simply genetics in determining a child’s intelligence.
According to Psychology Spot it’s estimated that 40-60 percent of intelligence is hereditary – the rest comes from our environment.
So don’t worry dads, you can obviously still play a huge role in your child’s intellectual development.
Alternatively you can focus on teaching them your best jokes and making sure they support the right team growing up. It’s all important stuff.
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