Psychology of Intelligence: How to Actually Get Smarter

Psychology of Intelligence: How to Actually Get Smarter This video breaks down what actually raises intelligence, and why the tools you were sold for it don't. James Flynn at the University of Otago showed that IQ scores climbed about three points a decade through the twentieth century, and Bernt Bratsberg and Ole Rogeberg's 2018 study of more than 730,000 Norwegian men found them falling again, even between brothers in the same family. Christian Brinch and Taryn Galloway (2012) and Stuart Ritchie and Elliot Tucker-Drob's 2018 meta-analysis of over 600,000 people put a number on the one thing that reliably moves it: every extra year of education adds between one and five IQ points. Adrian Owen's 2010 trial with 11,430 people found that brain games don't, and a 2025 study led by Hamsa Bastani shows how a chatbot can quietly make you worse. Your number was never fixed, and it was never going to move because of an app. If you've ever nodded along in a meeting half a second late and gone home wondering whether this is just the brain you got, this one is for you. You don't have a slow brain. You have one that stopped being asked hard questions the day school ended. Which of the five laws are you starting this week, and which subject are you picking? Tell me in the comments. Thank you for watching Orvin. I'll be back with the next one soon. #psychology #intelligence #IQ #learning #selfimprovement #cognitivepsychology #getsmarter #orvin --- Research referenced James Flynn (1984, 1987; TED talk 2013) — IQ scores rose about three points per decade across the twentieth century, most of all on abstract-reasoning tests Bratsberg & Rogeberg (2018), PNAS — more than 730,000 Norwegian men: scores peak with those born in 1975 and then fall, also between brothers Brinch & Galloway (2012), PNAS — Norway's school reform: about 3.7 IQ points for each extra year of schooling Ritchie & Tucker-Drob (2018), Psychological Science — 42 data sets, over 600,000 people: 1 to 5 IQ points per year of education, still there in old age Owen et al. (2010), Nature — 11,430 people trained on brain games for six weeks and got better at the games, not at untrained tests US Federal Trade Commission (January 2016) — Lumosity's $2 million settlement over deceptive advertising Fisher, Goddu & Keil (2015), Journal of Experimental Psychology: General — searching online inflates how much people believe they know Ritchie, Bates & Plomin (2015), Child Development — 1,890 pairs of identical twins: the better early reader later scores higher on intelligence tests (critique: Bailey & Littlefield, 2017) Sinha & Kapur (2021), Review of Educational Research — 53 studies on productive failure: struggling before instruction improves understanding Bastani et al. (2025), PNAS — GPT-4 in math practice: 48 percent better in practice, 17 percent worse on the exam; a hint-only tutor showed no drop Gruber, Gelman & Ranganath (2014), Neuron — curiosity improves memory, including for unrelated things seen while curious --- Disclaimer: This video is for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute professional psychological or medical advice. If you're struggling with your mental health, please reach out to a licensed therapist or mental health professional.