Angry People Overestimate Their Intelligence: Study

They aren’t dumb, but they just might not be the Mensa members they think should be.

Anger is a strange emotion. It can wreak havoc and end in severely unfortunate events. But it can also result in something positive. Sometimes getting a bit angry about something can push you to accomplish what you’ve been meaning to.

It can inspire you to change what you don’t like. And even make you confident. But beware- research shows that anger can also make you over confident.

A study out of the University of Warsaw in Poland surveyed over 520 undergraduate students studying in Warsaw. To come up with their findings, researchers had students answer questions about how often they got angry. They were also asked to determine just how smart they thought they were.

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Following this, each participant took an objective intelligence test. And guess what?

It was found that people who get angry often also do something else: they tend to overestimate their own intelligence. These types are often narcissistic scientists found, and they consider themselves to be, well, brilliant.

On the contrary, those who display neurotic tendencies usually underestimate their own intelligence.

So, it’s true that some world leaders may not be as gifted as they think they are. But that seemingly crazy cat lady living next door? She just might save humanity. She may be the one to drag us back from the precipice of disaster. One kind and measured word at a time.

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