MENSA
Member for 30 Years
In 1990 I noticed an advertisement about Mensa on the front page of the Times. There were a few puzzles to do and they seemed reasonably simple. So I decided to sit the Mensa test. Of course, it was much more difficult and I was very surprised to pass.
This set me thinking about carrying out a research project with members of Mensa. I broached the idea of having my Personality Questionnaire published in the Mensa magazine. I would collect the data from the members who responded, and the results could be published there. I would also give a series of conferences for members around the country. My book, "Understanding your Personality" had recently been published, and as this was selling well it would give added information to members.
To give further credibility to the research I decided to repeat the questionnaire 5 years later, collect the results again and have this published in the magazine. In all, nearly 3,000 members responded by sending in their questionnaires, and the second set of data correlated exactly with the first. My husband, Tom, supported me by doing all the admin for the conferences, leaving me free to give the sessions and have time to talk individually with participants.
The results of my research demonstrated that members of Mensa indicate twice as much Intuition as the general public does. This is using Intuition as used in my Personality Questionnaire. Meaning that you see the big picture rather than the details; you remember events more as impressions than the actual specifics; your mind may jump from one thing to another; you are interested in patterns, new possibilities and the future rather than the past.
Of course, much of the Mensa test does require Intuition as the questions are not factual, they require pushing your mind around. I found collecting the data and giving the conferences proved to be totally fascinating, and so did those who came to the conferences.
This set me thinking about carrying out a research project with members of Mensa. I broached the idea of having my Personality Questionnaire published in the Mensa magazine. I would collect the data from the members who responded, and the results could be published there. I would also give a series of conferences for members around the country. My book, "Understanding your Personality" had recently been published, and as this was selling well it would give added information to members.
To give further credibility to the research I decided to repeat the questionnaire 5 years later, collect the results again and have this published in the magazine. In all, nearly 3,000 members responded by sending in their questionnaires, and the second set of data correlated exactly with the first. My husband, Tom, supported me by doing all the admin for the conferences, leaving me free to give the sessions and have time to talk individually with participants.
The results of my research demonstrated that members of Mensa indicate twice as much Intuition as the general public does. This is using Intuition as used in my Personality Questionnaire. Meaning that you see the big picture rather than the details; you remember events more as impressions than the actual specifics; your mind may jump from one thing to another; you are interested in patterns, new possibilities and the future rather than the past.
Of course, much of the Mensa test does require Intuition as the questions are not factual, they require pushing your mind around. I found collecting the data and giving the conferences proved to be totally fascinating, and so did those who came to the conferences.
