HIGH IQ COUNTRIES HAVE LESS SOFTWARE PIRACY, RESEARCH FINDS
BY ERNESTO ON JUNE 19, 2016
Researchers have found that software piracy is directly linked to intelligence on a national scale. Covering more than 100 countries, the study shows that software piracy rates are lower in more intelligent nations. However, that doesn t mean that dumb countries have no option to curb this trend.
pirates dillemma There are hundreds of reasons why people may turn to piracy. A financial motive is often mentioned, as well as lacking legal alternatives.
A new study from a group of researchers now suggests that national intelligence can also be added to the list.
The researchers report their findings in a paper titled “Intelligence and Crime: A novel evidence for software piracy,” which offers some intriguing insights.
In a rather straightforward analysis, the research examines the link between national IQ scores and local software piracy rates, which are reported by the Business Software Alliance. As can be seen below, there’s a trend indicating that countries with a higher IQ have lower software rates.
“We find that intelligence has statistically significant negative impact on piracy rates,” the researchers confirm in their paper, drawing a causal conclusion.