A new study asserts that the intelligence quotient (IQ) of the average American citizen is now on the decline for the first time in nearly 100 years.
According to the Washington Free Beacon, the study was published in the psychology journal Intelligence. Analyzing the time period between 2006 and 2018, the study’s authors note that the biggest decline in IQ occurred among Americans between the ages of 18 and 22.
The study suggests that this downturn is directly related to a decline in the quality of public education in the United States, as well as many schools reducing the threshold for admission or passing certain classes, often in the name of racial diversity.
“Either the caliber of education has decreased across this study’s sample,” the study reports, “and/or there has been a shift in the perceived value of certain cognitive skills.”
Certain school districts, such as Culver City School Districts in Los Angeles, have outright eliminated pre-existing honors programs so that certain students, mostly non-White students, would not feel excluded by not qualifying for such accolades. At least two major universities in the country – the University of California, Berkeley and Columbia University – have outright eliminated the prior requirement that students submit the results of their standardized tests in order to be considered for admission.