I may or may not write a post about this topic later but I'll answer that briefly.
Hmm, does IQ make someone a good debater?
Practically no single thing makes anyone good at anything. But whatever IQ measures is a major component in what makes one good at debating.
It's really just a measure of logic and some of the biggest IQs are on the autism spectrum. We all know how easily high end autistics melt down if you disagree with their logic.
Do you seriously consider that a valid argument against the claim that the average IQ of the participants is a major factor determining the quality of debate on an online platform? Are you suggesting that grasp of logic has no bearing on how good somebody is at crafting valid arguments?
I'm suggesting that IQ is no measure on its own and that was an example. Seeing as you concede here that no one thing alone makes anyone a good anything, I'm surprised you didn't see that.
I'm not much good at debating. I merely put thoughts forward. I don't think quickly and it takes me a while to mull thoughts over. I'm easily disarmed by an argument and it can take me a few hours to realise if it's not even valid. I actually find it easier to debate on here, due to being able to come back some time later with a formed response. Face to face I have no hope. I hate confrontation. Yet my IQ comes in that 0.1% section in tests (or used to at least ;D). Logic has one answer, debates don't necessarily. In fact, a good debater can probably win a debate on something which isn't logical.
I believe it needs a certain amount of emotional intelligence (do they call that EQ?) to be able to debate without resorting to emotional outbursts. Does emotional intelligence come with IQ? Maybe.
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