Hostname: page-component-7b7567c8c-lpg2g Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2026-11-15T12:54:39.275Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Genetic influences on sex differences in outstanding mathematical reasoning ability

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 February 2010

Ada H. Zohar
Affiliation:
Scheinfeld Center for Human Genetics in the Social Sciences, Department of Psychology, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel 91905. mszohar@pluto.mscc.huji.ac.il

Abstract

Sexual selection provides an adequate partial explanation for the difference in means between the distributions, but fails to explain the difference in variance, that is, the overrepresentation of both boys with outstanding mathematical reasoning ability (OMRA) and boys with mental retardation. Other genetic factors are probably at work. While spatial ability is correlated with OMRA, so are other cognitive abilities. OMRA is not reducible to spatial ability; hence selection for navigational skill is unlikely to be the only mechanism by which males have gained an advantage in OMRA.

Information

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1996

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Article purchase

Temporarily unavailable