Effective Altruists: Not As Mentally Ill As You Think

Short data post testing the local theory that EA selects for depression/anxiety/self-hatred. Using 2014 LessWrong survey data (758 non-EA vs 422 EA), finds EAs are NOT more anxious/OCD/scrupulous, but are modestly more depressed (22% vs 17%, p=.04) and notably more autistic (8.5% vs 5%, p=.02), with autists donating more even outside EA — so the driver isn't self-hatred. A digression on Rusch (2015) (bankers' apparent consequentialism is a male-gender artifact) leads to the finding that LW filters so hard for consequentialism it equalizes the gender gap. Closes by noting the result only shows EAs ~ other rationalists, not EAs vs the general population.

Quality 58 · Solid. 58 — upper-Solid. A clean, honest empirical check that does the work nobody else did, but short (~700 words), narrow, on small self-reported effects and self-admittedly limited ('all it shows is EAs don't differ from other rationalists'); applies existing survey data rather than generating a durable idea, so Solid rather than Strong.

Claude’s paradigm shift 28 · Slight. 28 — Slight. Testing a community folk-theory with existing survey data; no new frame.

Real-world impact 2 · Minor. 2 — small within-community influence on how the EA/rationalist subculture understands its own psychological profile; no wider reach.