The University of Stanford, in the United States, tried to analyze how a person’s first name could influence social perception and educational opportunities. According to the researchers, here is the least well -classified female and male first name.
The University of Stanford, in the United States, recently conducted a study in the field of social and differential psychology, in order to better understand the mechanisms by which a simple first name can condition, in certain contexts, the way in which an individual is perceived and treated during his educational journey. The objective: to question implicit biases and sociocognitive determinisms associated with first names in English -speaking societies.
A name does not determine a person’s intelligence and there is no question of stigmatizing people who bear these first names, immediately poses Professor Emily Thompson, who led the study. Because the research on the first name having the best or the worst IQ are numerous. The University of Stanford, in the United States, has just published new results after analyzing how first names could influence individuals. Researchers relied on a wide statistical corpus, including thousands of standardized intelligence test results, crossing them with databases of current first names in English -speaking countries. Their work suggests that a first name does not directly influence cognitive capacities, but that it can play a role in social labeling mechanisms, in the expectations of teachers or employers, and more broadly in access to educational resources.
“Names can be linked to specific socio-economic groups, levels of education, family history or cultural contexts that influence access to educational opportunities,” said Professor Thompson. Thus, according to the statistical analysis carried out, the least well -classified male first name would be Jonathan. This first name, of Hebrew origin, means “gift of God” or “God has given”. In the biblical tradition, Jonathan is the son of King Saul, often quoted for his courage and his loyalty.
On the feminine side, it is another Hebrew first name that appears at the bottom of the ranking: Sarah. In the Old Testament, she is the wife of Abraham, an important maternal figure. However, this first name is one of the most attributed to the world, and these results must be taken back. “Intelligence is not predetermined by a first name,” repeats the team of researchers. Among the other names in the weakest IQ appear (according to other studies on the subject): the names Aline, Hervé, Manuel, Louise, Emma, Olivier, Caroline, Timothée, Julien, Chloé or Gabriel …
All of these data highlights the effect of social and cultural stereotypes more than real differences in intelligence. From a rigorous psychometric perspective, it would be wrong to interpret these correlations as causalities. What the study highlights is the persistence of a subtle but real social conditioning, where the first name acts as a perceived marker, influencing external expectations – and potentially personal development trajectories.
