41 People Who Just Realized They’re Dating An Idiot

But doing something terribly stupid doesn't make the person themselves stupid. Bright folks constantly forget to put on their seatbelt, cross the street without looking both ways, or hit reply-all when they really meant to reply to one person. Why? According to Heather Butler, an assistant professor of psychology at California State University, it's because smart people aren't all that smart. In an article for Scientific American, Butler talks about the subject of why smart people behave foolishly by differentiating between intelligence and critical-thinking skills. She suggests that intelligence, which is often measured by IQ test scores, is largely unrelated to critical thinking, "a collection of cognitive skills that allow us to think rationally in a goal-oriented fashion and a disposition to use those skills when appropriate."

Butler isn't the only one who believes this. University of Waterloo psychologist, Igor Grossmann, and his colleagues also argue that most intelligence tests fail to represent our real-world decision-making and ability to interact with others.

Another reason behind this issue could be arrogance. Smart people tend to think they are smarter (and better) than everyone. Professor Andre Spicer refers to this as the self-serving bias: "Not everyone can be above average — but we can all have the illusion that we are... We collect all the information we can find to prove ourselves right and ignore any information that proves us wrong. We feel good, but we overlook crucial facts. As a result, the smartest people ignore the intelligence of others so they make themselves feel smarter." Because of this, people might rationalize their mistakes to themselves, elevating their abilities and luck, and believe that they're somehow protected from misfortunes.