Marriage, Criminals and Geniuses

A psychologist at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand recently announced a bold finding. Genius -- both criminal and creative -- is driven by the same force of nature. It is also related to the male instinct to compete for a mate and for attention. While looking through the files of 280 great scientists, the majority of them made their most significant contributions by their third decade, according to Satoshi Kanazawa. However, aging was not the main culprit in declining brainpower. Rather, the biggest obstacle to genius is marriage. According to the study (which was published in the July issue of the Journal of Research in Personality) within five years of marriage, two thirds of the scientists simply slowed down.

This theory is not completely negative. It appears that genius works in the same manner whether it is used for good or evil purposes. Criminal masterminds often committed their most heinous crimes before their thirties. Those who marry well subsequently stop committing crime, whereas criminals at the same age who remain unmarried tend to continue their unlawful ways.

What are the scientific reasons for this? Testosterone levels fuel the urge for competition and also to reproduce. Once a man marries, his competitive urges diminish, along with testosterone level. So Albert Einstein, (a man who should know) was once again correct when he claimed, "A person who has not made his great contribution to science before the age of 30 will never do so." We shall just add, "most of the time."

Resources:

Read more information about Dr. Kanazawa's study.

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Many educators believe that traditional concepts of intelligence, based on I.Q. testing, are far too limited. The theory of multiple intelligences accounts for a broader range of human potential.

October 11, 2003