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Do You Think Speaking Up is Hard?

By SiliconIndia | Wednesday, 08 February 2012, 03:15 Hrs | 3 Comments

Bangalore: Often, it is seen speaking up is actually hard for people, who are in the fear of saying something stupid, as a result they prefer to keep their mouth shut in a meeting even if they consider themselves at least as smart as anyone else in the room. This was brought into limelight by researchers of the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute. Who explained, why many people become, in effect, less intelligent in small group settings? reports, "The Wall Street Journal".

The report highlights the fact if you believe that others in a group are smarter, you may become dumber, temporarily losing your problem-solving capability which is termed by the scientists as our "expression of IQ."

With the usage of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), researchers at the Virginia tech studied how the brain measures information about social status in a small group and how peoples' sensitivity of their condition affects their cognitive act.

Standard intelligence test was conducted by the scientists among 70 individuals who were divided into 14 groups of five. Each group was then asked to repeat 92 test questions dealing with sequences and spatial problems.

While having FMRI scans two individuals from each groups answered the questions. After answering each question, the individuals noticed what their rank within the group was and whether their position went up, down or remained stable in compared to the group.

In the beginning, all brain scans demonstrated pierce in action in the amygdala, the part of the brain that processes emotion and records fear. However, after answering 10 questions, 13 individuals improved and ended up with scores that were closer to their opening performance. But, 14 in the meanwhile did not recover. When these 14 subjects saw their rankings backsliding they seemed to be in fear as a result they answered more questions incorrectly.

"It was like the 'Survivor' show," stated Read Montague, leader of the study, director of the Human Neuroimaging Laboratory and the Computational Psychiatry Unit at the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute and professor of neuroscience at University College London.

"Some people stayed stressed and freaked out the whole time, and some people habituated relatively quickly and started solving small problems," said Dr. Montague.

Based on the findings the researchers claimed that 11 of the 14 "low performers" were female; and 10 out of the 13 "high performers" were men.

The scientists believed that the low-performers were more familiar to group social dynamics, subconsciously getting worried about their performance and judging themselves in relation to others.
Often, it is noticed women are more conscious of what others may be feeling or thinking, a feeling that likely has an evolutionary origin. Dr. Montague says "For the group to provide you with any extra stability or protection, you had to be sensitive to how the group was doing."

In some cases, it is noted if a person is quiet that does not mean he/she is shy. He/she might be an introvert who is not smart enough to express his point of view in front of others. Introverts generally have a preference to gather their thoughts before speaking and can be snowed under a group of extroverts, who think out loud and express their opinion.

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Reader's comments(3)

1: Speaking up is very difficult for people who grew up in India. Children are strongly discouraged from asking questions and severely punished if they ask questions for which the teacher doesn't know the answer. Parents also discourage the children from expressing their opinions. Obedience is highly valued in India. Parents are always making decisions for their children on careers, marriage, procreation, finances etc. They do this until they die. so how do you expect people who grew up in India to speak up?

Posted by:Dr. Chengara Sreemadhavan - 11 Feb, 2012