“IQ And Socioeconomic Development Across Regions Of The UK”, 2015-06-19 (; similar):
Cross-regional correlations between average IQ and socioeconomic development have been documented in many different countries. This paper presents new IQ estimates for the 12 regions of the UK. These are weakly correlated (r=0.24) with the regional IQs assembled by 1979. Assuming the two sets of estimates are accurate and comparable, this finding suggests that the relative IQs of different UK regions have changed since the 1950s, most likely due to differentials in the magnitude of the Flynn effect, the selectivity of external migration, the selectivity of internal migration or the strength of the relationship between IQ and fertility.
The paper provides evidence for the validity of the regional IQs by showing that IQ estimates for UK nations (England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland) derived from the same data are strongly correlated with national PISA scores (r=0.99).
It finds that regional IQ is positively related to income, longevity, and technological accomplishment; and is negatively related to poverty, deprivation, and unemployment. A general factor of socioeconomic development is correlated with regional IQ at r=0.72.