Kenya Kura of Japan explains why Asians aren’t more successful in science, citing two factors:
1. Low curiosity, which is expressed by lower Openness to experience (-.59 SD) as shown in various cross-cultural personality comparisons.
2. Collectivism, which is captured by various individualism-collectivism indices such as the Hofstede individualism index (IDV), or Hofstede and Triandis individualism index (about -2 SD). The genetic underpinnings for these traits, such as DRD4, 5HTTLPR, and OPRM1 have also become increasingly apparent.
To integrate these psychological traits, a “q” factor is constructed by factor analysis on measures of Openness and Collectivism, which are then correlated with variables measuring academic achievements and also student assessments. It is found that IQ scores coupled with “q” factor scores neatly predict racial scientific achievements and also world-wide student assessments.
(Hat tip to Mangan.)
This explains a lot. Many of the frustrations me and other Asia-based expats experience daily are summed up in the abstract: we are surrounded by really smart people who are utterly incapable of solving relatively simple problems.