Race Realism (All Points)

Race Realism (Definition)

• View that racial differences are largely explained by genetics rather than by environment, history, or social structures

Race Realism Pro-Argument #1: Genetic Differences Exist Between Populations

• Since humans evolved in geographically separated groups, natural selection would have led to meaningful genetic differences between populations, which may extend to psychological or cognitive traits 

Race Realism Pro-Argument #2: IQ Arguments

• There are consistent gaps in average IQ scores between racial groups across many countries

• Because these gaps persist even after controlling for socioeconomic factors, part of what must explain the gap is genetics

Race Realism Pro Argument #3: Heritability of Intelligence

• Twin and adoption studies show that IQ has a high heritability within populations (estimated at 50%-80%)

• If intelligence is heritable within groups, it is likely heritable between groups

• Scholars who argued for a hereditary component to intelligence differences:

  • Richard Lynn

  • Arthur Jensen

  • Herrnstein & Murray (The Bell Curve)

Race Realism Pro Argument #4: Cross-Cultural Consistency 

• Racial differences in test scores and socioeconomic outcomes are observed worldwide, not just in historically racist countries 

  • For example, populations of African descent tend to score lower on IQ tests globally, while East Asian populations often score higher

Race Realism Pro Argument #5: Evolutionary Arguments 

• Environmental pressures in colder climates required greater long-term planning, abstract thinking, and cooperation, supposedly leading to higher average intelligence in populations from those regions 

  • These evolutionary pressures explain why East Asians and Europeans tend to score higher on IQ tests than other groups

Race Realism Pro Argument #6: Socioeconomic and Crime Data 

• There are disparities in 

  • Income

  • Educational achievement

  • Crime rates

• These disparities suggest innate group differences

• Persistent gaps, despite anti-discrimination laws and social programs, point to biological factors rather than solely social causes

Race Realism Anti-Argument #1: Race is a social construct, not a biological reality

• Human genetic variation is indeed real, but it does not divide neatly into discrete “races”

  • For example, census records and race-based documentation vary from society to society insofar as what they deem the different races of the world

• Most genetic diversity is found within populations (estimated at 85-90%), not between them

Race Realism Anti-Argument #2: IQ Arguments (Debunked) 

• IQ tests

  • do not measure “pure” intelligence

  • are influenced by culture, schooling, socioeconomic status, test-taking familiarity, and stress

• Different groups may score differently on IQ tests due to

  • Environmental disadvantages

  • Stereotype threat

  • Differences in access to education

Race Realism Anti-Argument #3: Heritability of Intelligence is not equivalent to Group Differences 

• Heritability estimates apply within a group, under similar environmental conditions 

  • Thus, they do not apply that differences between groups are genetic

    • For example, height is highly heritable, but population differences in average height can be explained largely by nutrition

Race Realism Anti-Argument #4: Cross-Cultural Consistency (Debunked) 

• Racial differences in test scores and socioeconomic outcomes are not consistent across all contexts, so some counterexamples include:

  • The Black-White IQ gap in the US has narrowed significantly over the past decades 

  • African immigrants in Western countries sometimes outperform native-born populations that “look similar” 

  • Jewish populations, once stereotyped as inferior, are now among the highest-achieving groups academically and economically 

Race Realism Anti-Argument #5: Evolutionary Arguments (Debunked)

• Claims that “cold climates selected for higher intelligence” are speculative and ignore many other factors / pressures including

  • Disease resistance

  • Food availability 

  • Social cooperation

• Complex cognitive traits are influenced by many genes plus environment - no clear “intelligence gene” differences have been identified between populations 

Race Realism Anti-Argument #6: Socioeconomic and Historical Factors 

• Disparities that affect test outcomes and social statistics include

  • Wealth

  • Housing

  • Schools

  • Healthcare

• Systemic disadvantages still persist due to generations of

  • Structural Racism

  • Slavery

  • Segregation

  • Colonialism

• In countries where barriers are reduced, gaps tend to shrink

Race Realism Anti-Argument #7: Socioeconomic and Crime Data

• Higher crime rates among certain groups are strongly correlated with 

  • Poverty 

  • Policing practices

  • Neighborhood conditions 

• They are not correlated with innate biology 

• When socioeconomic status is equalized, racial differences in crime rates largely disappear