Individuals with low IQ resist change when it comes to Web browsers, says research company AptiQuant
New research allegedly found a link between IQ levels of Internet users and their preferences for Web browsers, adding that most people with higher IQ are moving away from Microsoft's Internet Explorer 6 (IE) to other browsers.
UPDATE: It looks increasingly likely that the story is an elaborate hoax or marketing stunt. The full story is here.
A study by online psychometric testing company AptiQuant supposedly found that the average IQ score of the individuals using the latest version of IE in 2006 was significantly higher than the individuals using the current version of IE now.
The study, which used a Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (IV) test and covered over 100,000 people, showed a substantial relationship between an individual's cognitive ability and their choice of Web browser.
All the respondents were from the UK, the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
The 'research company' said that a significant number of individuals with a low score on the cognitive test were found to be using Microsoft Internet Explorer (IE) versions 6.0 to 9.0.
It added that "there was no significant difference in the IQ scores between individuals using Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox and Apple's Safari; however, it was on an average higher than IE users."
Individuals using Opera, Camino and IE with Chrome Frame scored a little higher on an average than others. This data supports the hypothesis that the IQ score and the choice of web browser are related, the company said.
The Canada-based company said the test results also showed a clear indication that individuals on the lower side of the IQ scale tend to resist a change/upgrade of their browsers.
AptiQuant said that the hypothesis can be extended to any software in general, however more research is needed for that.
Many users, particularly in countries like China, South Korea, Japan, Saudi Arabia and India, still use IE6. In China 34.5% of Web users use IE6. Only Norway and Finland have less than one per cent of users on IE6.
In March this year, Microsoft started a website dedicated to help and track the reduction of use of what it calls an old security-lapsed browser, IE6. Microsoft had then said "it's time to say goodbye" to IE6. The creator of the browser urges users to upgrade to a newer version such as IE 8 or 9.
In May 2010, Microsoft started its "milk campaign", saying that using IE6 is like drinking nine-year-old milk.
UPDATE: It looks increasingly likely that the story is an elaborate hoax or marketing stunt. The full story is here.
Comments may be moderated for spam, obscenities or defamation.