Report Claims That Internet Explorer Users are IQ-Challenged

We've made the point many times on OStatic that open source browsers, primarily Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome, are leading innovation, and the steady drop in market share for Microsoft's Internet Explorer browser supports that argument. Now, a Canadian psychometric assessment firm has attempted to quantify whether people still using Internet Explorer have lower IQs than people using competitive browsers. According to results from Aptiquant's study on the topic, they apparently do.

Aptiquant reportedly offered free online IQ tests to 100,000 people, gathering the results along with data on which browsers the tested volunteers were using. According to a report detailing the study's results:

"With just a look at the graphs in the report, it comes out pretty clear that Internet Explorer users scored lower than average on the IQ tests. Chrome, Firefox and Safari users had just a teeny bit higher than average IQ scores. And users of Camino, Opera and IE with Chrome Frame had exceptionally higher IQ levels."

You can review specific results from the study and download data here. It is worth noting that the volunteers in the study were likely to be consumer browser users who were not reporting on which browsers the companies they work for require them to use. Many browser users are forced by their companies to use Internet Explorer for compatibility and security reasons.

According to Aptiquant's CEO, he has been receiving hate mail from Internet Explorer users since releasing the results of the study.  A report from Aptiquant also says that IE users are threatening a lawsuit.