The Unexpected Benefits of Dating an Intelligent Partner

Intelligent men may be better relationship partners in a number of ways.

Reviewed by Lybi Ma

Key points

• Intelligent men were less likely to report negative behaviors toward their romantic partners.
• Intelligent men were more invested in and committed to their partnerships.
• Fluid intelligence, the ability to solve novel problems, was related to men's behaviors toward their partners.

You might expect that an intelligent partner might also achieve academic prominence, workplace success, or even a higher socioeconomic status. However, recent research published in the journal Personality and Individual Differences suggests some unexpected benefits for partnerships with intelligent men.

Researchers Vance, DeLeccee, and Shackelford (2024) surveyed more than 200 heterosexual men between the ages of 18-65 who were in their current romantic relationships for at least six months or longer. These men completed the International Cognitive Ability Resource to assess their general intelligence. Within that measure, the men also completed a fluid reasoning task to assess their ability to respond to novel problems (such as which letter or number might follow a series of letters or numbers). The men also completed several other measures assessing constructs such as jealousy, aggression against their partners, sexual coercion, sexual dysfunction, and investment in their relationships.

The researchers found that men’s intelligence in general, and their performance on the fluid reasoning task in particular, was associated with fewer negative behaviors toward their romantic partners. For example, more intelligent men were less likely to report insulting their partners or using coercive techniques to pressure their partners into sex. Men’s intelligence was also negatively related to their self-reports of erectile dysfunction. Furthermore, men’s intelligence was positively associated with more favorable treatment of their partners. For example, men who scored higher on the fluid intelligence measure reported being more invested in and committed to their current relationship partners.

As the authors report, in prior research higher fluid intelligence scores were associated with improved ability to perceive others’ emotions and to manage one’s own emotions. The authors speculate that higher fluid intelligence might allow men to more effectively control negative behavioral impulses or to more appropriately respond to their partner’s needs.

The authors note several limitations of the current study. Due to the correlational design of the project, the researchers were unable to draw causal conclusions about the effects of men’s intelligence on their relationship quality. Also, due to the use of heterosexual men as participants, it is unclear whether these results might generalize to women or men in same-sex partnerships. Another limitation of the research is that the participants only provided self-reports of their behavior toward their partners. Future research should examine women’s reports of their partners’ behavior to verify the results of the current study.