Khaberni - Intelligence is not just knowledge or education. Because a person can be an excellent specialist, having experience and memory, yet still appear stupid.
According to experts, stupidity is not a lack of intelligence, but a mixture of certain personality traits that prevent the person from thinking clearly, learning, and changing. The stupid person can be recognized by these traits.
1 - Complete lack of self-criticism. - The main sign of intellectual immaturity is the belief in the person's infallibility. Such a person does not question their judgments, does not recognize their mistakes, and is unable to correct their behavior.
Psychologists call this the Dunning-Kruger effect: the less a person knows, the more convinced they are that they know everything. The lack of self-criticism deprives them of the opportunity to grow. Because ultimately, only those who realize they might be wrong learn. The wise person questions and tests their conclusions, while the foolish one claims without evidence and feels insulted when their errors are pointed out.
2 - Impulsiveness and hasty decisions. The foolish person reacts before thinking. Their decisions are emotional, spontaneous, driven by momentary desire. They may lose their temper, make an important decision in anger or resentment, and then look for someone to blame. Intelligence, however, does not lie in the absence of emotions but in the ability to pause. A smart person may be angry or upset, but nonetheless gives themselves time to calm down, looks at the situation from a distance, and then acts. Haste, on the other hand, makes a person weak and caught in the trap of their reactions.
3 - Black-and-white thinking. Another trait revealing a narrow mind and inability to see subtleties is dividing the world into "us" and "them," and into "right" and "wrong." These individuals consider anyone who thinks differently as either an enemy or stupid.
4 - Zealousness and lack of a sense of humor. It is ironic that the less mentally flexible a person is, the more they strive to appear serious. Often, they compensate with enthusiasm, vanity, and a desire to "show off" and assert their importance, covering up their self-doubt.
The intelligent person is not afraid to appear simple and can mock themselves. Because humor requires mental flexibility: the ability to see situations from different angles, understand irony, and make connections. Therefore, psychologists consider a sense of humor to be one of the signs of mental health and advanced intelligence.
5 - Lack of interest in the new. Stupidity is not always innate but can simply be a developmental delay. When a person stops asking questions, reading, and marveling, they gradually lose their ability to learn.
According to psychologists, curiosity is the main driver of intelligence. It pushes us to search for explanations, to pursue and ask questions. Without it, the mind stagnates, turning into a set of phrases and customary reactions. It is curiosity, not the amount of knowledge, that distinguishes an active mind from dogmatism.
It is important to know that these traits combined make a person "stupid," and not individually.
