Jewish Intellectual Exceptionalism? Ethnic Representation at the University of Toronto Medical School
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Jewish Intellectual Exceptionalism? Ethnic Representation at the University of Toronto Medical School Jordan A. Chad1,2 · Robert Brym3 Received: 21 September 2019 / Accepted: 5 August 2020 © Springer Nature B.V. 2020
Abstract In this paper we propose an empirically grounded theory of the relatively high level of intellectual attainment of Jews. Two main theories of Jewish intellectual attainment already exist, one genetic, the other cultural. Unfortunately, both theories posit causal mechanisms that change little and/or too slowly to account for variation in Jewish intellectual attainment over relatively short time periods, including the apparent decline that is now occurring in Western societies. In contrast, our alternative explanation highlights the causal importance of sociological circumstances. We contend that a population’s intellectual attainment is proportional to the degree to which its members (1) belong to a first generation to enjoy relatively abundant opportunities for the intellectual attainment of their children and (2) possess sufficient resources to enable their children to effectively compete for these opportunities. Where these conditions weaken, so too does the observed level of intellectual attainment. We render our theory plausible by examining a century of change in the ethnic composition of graduates from the University of Toronto Medical School, one of the world’s premier institutions for the training of physicians. While a rigorous test of our theory is beyond the scope of this work, we present evidence that is consistent with our theory and inconsistent with the genetic and cultural theories. Keywords Jews · Ethnicity · Intellectuals · Medical school · Toronto · Canada
* Robert Brym [email protected] Jordan A. Chad [email protected] 1
Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
2
Rotman Research Institute, Baycrest Health Sciences, Toronto, Canada
3
Department of Sociology and Centre for Jewish Studies, University of Toronto, 725 Spadina Avenue, Toronto M5S 2J4, Canada
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J. A. Chad, R. Brym
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Jewish Intellectual Exceptionalism? In 2020, Jews represented 0.2% of the world’s population. At the same time, they accounted for 23.9% of Nobel Prize recipients, 21.5% of Fields Medal recipients for mathematics, 27.1% of Turing Award recipients for computer science, 39.0% of the 100 most eminent psychologists of the twentieth century, 42.9% of world chess championship winners and 52.5% of Pulitzer Prize recipients for general nonfiction (AM Turing Award 2020; Haggbloom et al. 2002; International Mathematical Union 2020; NobelPrize.org 2020; Pulitzer Prizes 2020; Wikipedia 2020).2 This outstanding record of attainment has resulted in the popular conception of Jewish intellectual “exceptionalism” (Gilman 2008).3 Significantly, however, attainment by Jews in many intellectual pursuits has declined markedly in recent decades. For example, the proportion of Jewish recipients of the Fields Medal, awarded to mathematici
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