Brazil holds the 30th position in the world ranking of gifted people, although it is the leader in South America. The United States ranks first, with 52,000 high-IQ people, followed by the United Kingdom (19,000) and Germany (16,000).
There are now 2,090 members of the Mensa Brazil Association, an entity that gathers superintelligent people or people with high intellectual capacities in the country and is the official representative of Mensa International, the main organization of high intelligence quotient (IQ) in the world, gathering 150,000 members.
The word mensa means “table” in Latin. The brand was created to demonstrate the round-table nature of the organization, which aims to unite equals.
According to Mensa Brazil’s mapping, São Paulo leads the total number of people identified in Brazil as gifted, with 984 superintelligent people. Next is Rio de Janeiro, with 229 people, the Federal District, with 135, Paraná, with 134, and Rio Grande do Sul, with 94. On the other hand, Acre, Rondônia, and Amapá have no gifted individuals.
Mensa Brazil completed 20 years last July. It brings together people with high intellectual abilities, having as the only entrance requirement to have an IQ above 98% of the general population, proven by a referenced intelligence test.
The entity has three main objectives: to identify and promote human intelligence for the benefit of humanity; to encourage research on the nature, characteristics, and uses of intelligence; and to provide an intellectually and socially stimulating environment for its members.
TESTS TO IDENTIFY HIGH-IQ PEOPLE
The vice-president of the Mensa Brasil Association, Carlos Eduardo Fonseca, told Agência Brasil that the entity seeks to identify Brazilians with high IQ with periodic tests introduced in the country by the entity itself.
To determine if a person has a high IQ, the person must look for a psychologist trained in this area. Only professionals registered in the psychology councils can apply a battery of tests that measure IQ and a person’s intelligence.
According to neuropsychologist Leninha Wargas, “when a person undergoes IQ testing and reaches a result between 115 and 129, they are above average. Gifted, from 130 to 144 points, and genius, above 144 points.
Fonseca informed that the tests have values exceeding R$1,000 (US$196). As Mensa Brasil brought these tests to the country, it managed to lower the cost to R$98, which is the value of the tests for 16 and 17-year-olds.
The tests are performed every two months. By identifying superintelligent people, the entity seeks to bring them into a stimulating social and intellectual environment, helping science in its discoveries.
In Mensa Brazil, 163 Brazilians with IQs far above average were admitted by the institution before they turned 18. According to the association’s survey, the first child joined the entity in September 2006, when he was 9.
In September 2011, an even younger member, who was 7, joined the association. From May this year until now, the association has gained 79 underage members. The youngest is 4, said Carlos Eduardo Fonseca.
Of the total of superintelligent people identified by the entity in Brazil, 70% are between 19 and 36 years old. People between 13 and 18 years old correspond to 10%, the same level verified for the age group between 37 and 45 years old. Only 5% are older than 45.
Mensa Brasil identified the oldest member at the age of 72. The vice-president said that Mensa Brasil approved the testing instruments to be applied in Brazil to discover the potential in children as young as 2.5 years old.
To broaden the discovery of people with high or super abilities, the entity has periodically held rounds of tests in several Brazilian cities. The last round took place on July 30 in 13 cities from nine different Brazilian states simultaneously. The next round is scheduled for the end of September.
Besides having a high, above-average IQ, gifted people must also have motivation and creativity. Fonseca recommended that parents who suspect that their children have super potentialities and develop beyond what is expected for the child’s age group should seek an IQ diagnosis and a differentiated diagnosis of motivation and creativity “so that the government can offer them a special education.
This student has regular shifts of classes at school and, on the other shift, he has the resource room, where he works on his abilities”. Among them, he highlighted music and literature.
Mensa Brasil currently accepts five tests to measure IQ, each one for a different age group: WAIS III – Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Adults; WASI – Wechsler Intelligence Scale Abbreviated, WISC IV – Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, SON-R – Nonverbal Test of Intelligence, and RAPM – Raven’s Progressive Advanced Matrices.
According to Rodrigo Lopes Sauaia, president of Mensa Brazil, the country is an intellectual power still asleep and under-exploited. “We have one of the largest populations on the planet. About 2% of the inhabitants of Brazil may show signs of high abilities, with an IQ far above average. However, there is still no comprehensive mapping of these individuals,” he pointed out.
Carlos Eduardo Fonseca points out that the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 3% to 5% of the world population are gifted. Looking at the Brazilian population, he estimated that there are around 4 million people with high abilities. To confirm the estimate, it is necessary, in the first place, to identify people with high IQ so that they can claim special education, “as they have a constitutional right”, he recommended.
With information from Agência Brasil