Sex differences in inductive reasoning: A research synthesis using meta-analytic techniques

•There is variation in the magnitude of sex differences on inductive reasoning.•There is variation in the direction of sex differences on inductive reasoning.•Stimuli and item type may influence the sex difference observed. Meta-analyses concerning sex differences in measures of fluid ability have been limited to discussions of sex differences in the Raven's Progressive Matrices, a measure of inductive reasoning. This study synthesized data concerning sex differences on several different types of inductive reasoning tests in order to assess the evidence for an overall sex difference in manifest scores, as well as whether the magnitude of the sex difference may vary depending on certain test characteristics such as stimuli and item type. Meta-analytic techniques were used to summarize data concerning sex differences in inductive reasoning from 98 studies reporting data from 96,957 adults with mean ages 18 to 64 years. The overall summary effect size was g = +0.13 (range −0.54 to +0.68), however there was significant variation in the magnitude, and in some cases direction, of the effect size in measures of inductive reasoning. Some implications of this variation in the effect size of the sex difference across tests are discussed in light of theoretical interpretations and practical uses.