According to a survey by YouGov, 55% of Americans believe they are smarter than the average American. A mere 4% of respondents think they are less intelligent than average, and 34% say they are about average. Men are more likely than women to describe themselves as above average.
The results are not surprising. Western cultures have a habit of inflating their self-worth, past research has shown. The most competent individuals also tend to underestimate their ability, while incompetent people overestimate it. Not out of arrogance, but of ignorance—the worst performers often don't get negative feedback. In this survey, 28 percent of high school graduates say they are "slightly more intelligent" than average, while just 1 percent of people with doctoral degrees say they are "much less intelligent."
Of course, a Ph.D. doesn't necessarily measure intelligence, nor does how much money you make. Those factors, along with gender and race, may be better indicators of humblebrag ability than brainpower.
Then again, this survey was conducted by an online poll. Not only is it restricted to people who use the internet, it is also restricted to people who take online polls on the internet. Read more about this survey at NationalJournal. -via Digg