A new study carried out by Prof. John Antonakis of the Faculty of Business and Economics at the University of Lausanne, and his co-authors R. J. House and D. K. Simonton*, examined the relationship between a leader’s IQ and how effective they are perceived to be by their teams. The results show that a manager with a very high IQ can be perceived as less effective or even ineffective in their role as a leader. According to the theory applied, the optimal gap between the leader’s intelligence and that of their team members should not exceed 18 IQ points.
*Co-authors: Robert J. House, Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania and Dean Keith Simonton, University of California, Davis
While it has been proven that intelligence is essential for managing teams, is a very high level of intelligence necessarily synonymous with better leadership? “An appropriate gap, of 18 IQ points, is necessary, but being highly intelligent can present problems for leaders. Subordinates can struggle to follow their ideas or very complex discourse, which can prevent them from identifying with their boss and seeing them as effective,” explains John Antonakis, professor in the Faculty of Business and Economics at the University of Lausanne.
The study conducted by John Antonakis and his co-authors with 379 midlevel leaders in seven international firms and their teams is based on the theory developed by Prof. Simonton, one of the co-authors. This theoretical model suggests that the optimal IQ level for a leader heading up a team with an average IQ of 100, for example, should be around 118 points. With a larger (or smaller) gap, the leader may be perceived as less effective. Based on intelligence tests, a study of leaders’ character traits and evaluations completed by staff, the researchers were able to confirm the non-linear relationship between intelligence and the perception of leadership effectiveness. The values obtained in the study, which were close to those suggested by the theory, showed that the optimal IQ level for a leader depended directly on the average intelligence of their team.
What are the prospects for leaders with a very high IQ?
This study is based mainly on the perception of a leader’s effectiveness by their subordinates, rather than on objective performance indicators. According to John Antonakis, “It will be less problematic for leaders with a very high IQ to fulfil a strategic role that is more task-based and less focused on interpersonal relationships. In that situation, they will be judged mainly on their performance and the achievement of targets.”
See the article outlining the study on the research blog of HEC Lausanne: hecimpact.ch
Original research Antonakis (PDF/abstract on the editor’s website), J., House, R. J., & Simonton, D. K. (2017): "Can super smart leaders suffer from too much of a good thing? The curvilinear effect of intelligence on perceived leadership behaviour” published in Journal of Applied Psychology