Kids With Higher IQs More Protected From Traumatic Events

Intelligence could help shield children from traumatic events, U.S.
researchers report.

A new study found that children who are more intelligent than their
peers at age 6 were less likely to experience traumatic events by
age 17 and, if they did, were less likely to develop post-traumatic
stress disorder (PTSD).

Michigan State University researchers studied 336 boys and 377
girls born between 1983 and 1985 at two Michigan hospitals.
One hospital was located in a middle-class suburban community,
while the other was in a disadvantaged urban community.

At age 17, the youngsters were interviewed again as to the number
and type of traumatic events they'd experienced in their lives.
They were also asked how seriously those events affected them,
including whether they'd ever suffered symptoms of PTSD.

The researchers found that 541 (75.9 percent) of the youngsters had
experienced a traumatic event and 45 (6.3 percent overall and 8.3
percent of those who experienced trauma) met criteria for PTSD.

Youngsters who had an IQ greater than 115 at age 6 were less likely
to have experienced any kind of trauma (especially violent assaults)
and, if they did, were less likely to develop PTSD by age 17.


SOURCE:
LiveScience.com

This is very interesting, after reading it, it does make sense to me.

It does, to me explain why I've never really suffered from any
kind of trauma, in those kind of events.


Coments, Opinions?

Very interesting Iori...............
After reading this it does make sense to me.

However.....I was of the mind that it was the very oposite. I thought, that by being 'smarter' the kids would be more likely to dwell on it, overthink it and possibly obsess about it. 'IT" being whatever traumatic thing that happened.....and that by over thinking it they would be more prone to PSTD.

This article you have posted is giving me some food for thought on the issue,
Thanx!

Good find

I too find conflicting thoughts going thru my head over it. Perhaps the smarter children can compartmentalize the trauma or maybe they are just better at hiding their emotions.

Think on this I must ô¿ô

Perhaps the smarter children can compartmentalize the trauma or maybe they are just better at hiding their emotions.

I think that it that with smarter individuals, they think more along the
lines of "it happened, there's nothing I can do to change it, I need to
just get over it and not dwell on it, and learn from it.", and yes I do
think that smarter kids are better at hiding their true emotional state
as well.

Having a higher IQ might help prevent getting bogged down in self-reinforcing negative thought patterns. It could be that smarter kids are more able to use logic and reason to conquer their demons, and to dig themselves out of the holes life puts them in.

Very interesting to think about, in any case...

The counter-point, as has been mentioned, is that having a higher IQ might lead a child to over-think too much. Sometimes being smarter is useless, if all it leads to is seeing every answer but the right one...

Then again, part of me thinks that there's no such thing as too much information, assuming you have the wisdom to judge it accurately. That comes with time, genetics don't play a part in that aspect - or at least I don't think they do (I don't see how they could).

Thanks for posting this food for thought.

I've been told that I was a very smart kid. I'm still told that I have a good head, am open minded, and have a very positive attitude. Though I don't think very highly of my self, have small confidence in what ever I do. All this because I had a dead beat abuseive dad who still haunts my mind and dreams even though I haven't talked to him for about 5 years.
Yeah, my dad beat the living crap out of me when I was young, even told my mom that if I had been born a girl, he would've molested me. My parents seperated when I was 7 years old. I'm now 22 and still have flashbacks. However, I've always told my self "mind over matter". My criminal record is clean, never got a ticket, never have been in any trouble. I'm not violent like my dad because my mom raised me right. But the memories still haunt me to this day. This topic is one I don't discuss much but since it relates to this story, I can share and contribute.

I am always thinking, about anything and everything, but when I concentrate on one topic, I tend to over-think and see every answer other then the right one. However, I've listened to others stories, talking about how their dad fliped out and punched a wall, and these kids are cutting them selves. Alot of these kids I considered having a higher IQ then my self, they were very down to earth and did good in school. Yet here I am, having gone through all that I have, no cuts on my wrists, and I'm boggling at these people wondering what set them off. Everyone is different and some people take things harder then others. Though I can see how someone with a higher IQ could work through their problems because they can tackle every angle of the subject at hand. We as a human race have some weird people among us, but they're people all the same, no matter what IQ they have. I guess it really depends on the magnitude of the past stressful events that determines how badly a person's mind is damaged, but maby IQ does play a role. Thats where I'm on the fence, I don't see my self as a very smart person, but I'm still here, I'm not as depressed as I use to be. All it takes is time.

[edit on 15-11-2006 by Slash]

Originally posted by theRiverGoddess
However.....I was of the mind that it was the very oposite. I thought, that by being 'smarter' the kids would be more likely to dwell on it, overthink it and possibly obsess about it. 'IT" being whatever traumatic thing that happened.....and that by over thinking it they would be more prone to PSTD.

But they're also more capable of saying "there's a problem here and I'm getting obsessive and I need to handle it" and seeking a better solution. I thought they might be a bit more traumatized because they were picked on more.

This article you have posted is giving me some food for thought on the issue,

Yeah! Interesting article!

[edit on 15-11-2006 by Indellkoffer]