The
theory of multiple intelligences' was proposed by
Howard GardnerHoward Earl Gardner is an American psychologist who is based at Harvard University. He is best known for his theory of multiple intelligences.-Life:...
in 1983, to more accurately define the concept of
intelligenceIntelligence is an umbrella term used to describe a property of the mind that encompasses many related abilities, such as the capacities to reason, to plan, to solve problems, to think abstractly, to comprehend ideas, to use language, and to learn. There are several ways to define intelligence...
and address whether methods which claim to measure intelligence (or aspects thereof) are truly scientific.
Gardner's theory argues that intelligence, particularly as it is traditionally defined, does not sufficiently encompass the wide variety of abilities humans display. In his conception, a child who masters multiplication easily is not necessarily more intelligent
overall than a child who struggles to do so. The second child may be stronger in another
kind of intelligence, and therefore may best learn the given material through a different approach, may excel in a field outside of mathematics, or may even be looking through the multiplication learning process at a fundamentally deeper level that hides a potentially higher mathematical intelligence than in the one who memorizes the concept easily.
Gardner's categories of intelligence
The categories of intelligence proposed by Gardner are:
Bodily-kinesthetic
This area has to do with bodily movement and physiology. In theory, people who have bodily-kinesthetic intelligence should learn better by involving muscular movement, i.e. getting up and moving around into the learning experience, and are generally good at physical activities such as sports or dance. They may enjoy acting or performing, and in general they are good at building and making things. They often learn best by doing something physically, rather than reading or hearing about it. Those with strong bodily-kinesthetic intelligence seem to use what might be termed muscle memory - they remember things through their body such as verbal memory or images.
Careers that suit those with this intelligence include athletes, dancers, actors, surgeons, doctors, builders, and soldiers. Although these careers can be duplicated through virtual simulation they will not produce the actual physical learning that is needed in this intelligence.
Interpersonal
This area has to do with interaction with others. In theory, people who have a high interpersonal intelligence tend to be extroverts, characterized by their sensitivity to others' moods, feelings, temperaments and motivations, and their ability to cooperate in order to work as part of a group. They communicate effectively and empathize easily with others, and may be either leaders or followers. They typically learn best by working with others and often enjoy discussion and debate.
Careers that suit those with this intelligence include
salesA sale is the pinnacle activity involved in selling products or services in return for money or other compensation. It is an act of completion of a commercial activity.A sale is completed by the seller, the owner of the goods...
,
politicianA politician or political leader is an individual who is involved in influencing public decision making. This includes people who hold decision-making positions in government, and people who seek those positions, whether by means of election, coup d'état, appointment, electoral fraud, conquest,...
s,
managerManagement in all business and human organization activity is simply the act of getting people together to accomplish desired goals and objectives. Management comprises planning, organizing, staffing, leading, directing, facilitating and controlling or manipulating an organization or effort for...
s,
teacherIn education, a teacher is a person who educates others. A teacher who educates an individual student may also be described as a personal tutor....
s, and social workers.
Verbal-linguistic
This area has to do with words, spoken or written. People with high verbal-linguistic intelligence display a facility with words and languages. They are typically good at reading, writing, telling stories and memorizing words along with dates. They tend to learn best by reading, taking notes, listening to lectures, and discussion and debate. They are also frequently skilled at explaining, teaching and oration or persuasive speaking. Those with verbal-linguistic intelligence learn foreign languages very easily as they have high verbal memory and recall, and an ability to understand and manipulate syntax and structure.
This intelligence is highest in writers, lawyers, philosophers, journalists, politicians, poets, and teachers.
Logical-mathematical
This area has to do with logic, abstractions, reasoning, and numbers. While it is often assumed that those with this intelligence naturally excel in mathematics, chess, computer programming and other logical or numerical activities, a more accurate definition places emphasis on traditional mathematical ability and more reasoning capabilities, abstract patterns of recognition, scientific thinking and investigation, and the ability to perform complex calculations. It correlates strongly with traditional concepts of "intelligence" or IQ.
Career's which suit those with this intelligence include scientists, mathematicians, engineers, doctors and economists.
Naturalistic
This area has to do with nature, nurturing and relating information to one's natural surroundings. This type of intelligence was not part of Gardner's original theory of Multiple Intelligences, but was added to the theory in 1997. Those with it are said to have greater sensitivity to nature and their place within it, the ability to nurture and grow things, and greater ease in caring for, taming and interacting with animals. They may also be able to discern changes in
weatherWeather is a set of all the phenomena occurring in a given atmosphere at a given time. Weather phenomena lie in the troposphere. Weather refers, generally, to day-to-day temperature and precipitation activity, whereas climate is the term for the average atmospheric conditions over longer periods...
or similar fluctuations in their natural surroundings. They are also good at recognizing and classifying different species. They must connect a new experience with prior knowledge to truly learn something new.
"Naturalists" learn best when the subject involves collecting and analyzing, or is closely related to something prominent in nature; they also don't enjoy learning unfamiliar or seemingly useless subjects with little or no connections to nature. It is advised that naturalistic learners would learn more through being outside or in a kinesthetic way.
The theory behind this intelligence is often criticized, much like the spiritual or existential intelligence (see below), as it is seen by many as not indicative of an intelligence but rather an interest. However, it remains an indispensable intelligence for humans who live almost entirely from nature such as some native populations.
Careers which suit those with this intelligence include scientists, naturalists, conservationists, gardeners and farmers.
Intrapersonal
This area has to do with
introspectiveIntrospection is the self-observation and reporting of conscious inner thoughts, desires and sensations. It is a conscious mental and usually purposive process relying on thinking, reasoning, and examining one's own thoughts, feelings, and, in more spiritual cases, one's soul...
and self-reflective capacities. Those who are strongest in this intelligence are typically introverts and prefer to work alone. They are usually highly self-aware and capable of understanding their own emotions, goals and motivations. They often have an affinity for thought-based pursuits such as philosophy. They learn best when allowed to concentrate on the subject by themselves. There is often a high level of perfectionism associated with this intelligence.
Careers which suit those with this intelligence include philosophers, psychologists, theologians, writers and scientists.
Visual-spatial
This area has to do with vision and spatial judgment. People with strong visual-spatial intelligence are typically very good at visualizing and mentally manipulating objects. Those with strong spatial intelligence are often proficient at solving puzzles. They have a strong visual memory and are often artistically inclined. Those with visual-spatial intelligence also generally have a very good sense of direction and may also have very good hand-eye coordination, although this is normally seen as a characteristic of the bodily-kinesthetic intelligence.
There appears to be a high
correlationIn statistics, correlation indicates the strength and direction of a relationship between two random variables. The commonest use refers to a linear relationship. In general statistical usage, correlation or co-relation refers to the departure of two random variables from independence...
between spatial and mathematical abilities, which seems to indicate that these two intelligences are not independent. Since solving a mathematical problem involves manipulating symbols and numbers, spatial intelligence is involved.
Careers that suit those with this intelligence include artists, engineers, and architects.
Musical
This area has to do with
rhythmRhythm is the variation of the length and accentuation of a series of sounds or other events.-Rhythm in linguistics:...
, music, and hearing. Those who have a high level of musical-rhythmic intelligence display greater sensitivity to sounds, rhythms,
tone-Literature:* Tone , the manner in which the author speaks* Tone , the pitch and pitch changes in words of certain languages-Theory:* Pitch , the high and low sound of a music...
s, and music. They normally have good pitch and may even have
absolute pitchAbsolute pitch , widely referred to as perfect pitch, is the ability of a person to identify or recreate a musical note without the benefit of an external reference.-Definition:...
, and are able to sing, play musical instruments, and compose music. Since there is a strong auditory component to this intelligence, those who are strongest in it may learn best via lecture. In addition, they will often use songs or rhythms to learn and memorize information, and may work best with music playing in the background.
Careers that suit those with this intelligence include instrumentalists, singers, conductors, disc-jockeys, orators, writers (to a certain extent) and composers.
Other intelligences
Other intelligences have been suggested or explored by Gardner and his colleagues, including spiritual, existential and moral intelligence. Gardner excluded
spiritual intelligenceSpiritual intelligence is a term used to discern a suite or set of propensities comprising: perceptions, intuitions, cognitions, etc., related to spirituality and/or religiosity, especially spiritual capital. It has been discredited by its detractors as pseudoscientific due to its employment in...
due to what he perceived as the inability to codify criteria comparable to the other "intelligences". Existential intelligence (the capacity to raise and reflect on philosophical questions about life, death, and ultimate realities) meets most of the criteria with the exception of identifiable areas of the brain that specialize for this faculty. Moral capacities were excluded because they are normative rather than descriptive.
Savant syndrome
Gardner used case studies of autistic savants as part of his theory on multiple intelligences. On one hand they have severe mental disabilities and thus impaired social skills, but on the other they have some extraordinary mental abilities not found in most people. The savant syndrome skills involve striking feats of memory and often include arithmetic calculation and sometimes unusual abilities in art or music. There is actually a disproportionate regularity with which the triad of blindness, mental disability and musical genius occurs in savant syndrome. Examples include
Derek ParaviciniDerek Paravicini is a blind English autistic savant and a musical prodigy. He lives in Surrey, England.Paravicini was born prematurely, at 25 weeks. His blindness was caused by oxygen therapy given during his time in a neonatal intensive care unit. This also affected his developing brain,...
who has severe learning disability but can remember every song he has ever heard.
Others with savant syndrome are not autistic, but develop these abilities later on in life usually as a result of some accident, illness or trauma. For example
Alonzo ClemonsAlonzo Clemons is an American animal sculptor and a savant. He lives in Boulder, Colorado.Clemons suffered a severe brain injury as a child that left him developmentally disabled , but able to create very accurate animal sculptures out of clay. Clemons can create a sculpture of almost any animal,...
was a regular child until he suffered
brain damageBrain damage, or acquired brain injury, is the destruction or degeneration of brain cells.-Causes:Brain damage may occur due to a wide range of conditions, illnesses, injuries, and as a result of iatrogenesis...
as a result of a fall. Afterwards he learned to create accurate animal sculptures from clay using his photographic memory. Some scientists thus believe that the potential to be a genius is latent in all people but is obscured by normal functioning intellect. In the case of savants, the damage to the brain has somehow disrupted normal functioning and has allowed the brain to access these latent skills.
Savants are generally viewed as having exceptional spatial intelligence but verbal defects.
Use in education
Traditionally, schools have emphasized the development of logical intelligence and linguistic intelligence (mainly reading and writing). While many students function well in this environment, there are those who do not. Gardner's theory argues that students will be better served by a broader vision of education, wherein teachers use different methodologies, exercises and activities to reach all students, not just those who excel at linguistic and logical intelligence.
Many teachers see the theory as simple common sense. Some say that it validates what they already know: that students learn in different ways. On the other hand,
James TraubJames Traub, born in 1954, is a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine, where he has worked since 1998. From 1994 to 1997, he was a staff writer for The New Yorker. He has also written for The New York Review of Books, The Atlantic Monthly, National Review and Foreign Affairs...
's article in
The New Republic notes that Gardner's system has not been accepted by most academics in intelligence or teaching.
George Miller, the esteemed psychologist credited with discovering the mechanisms by which short term memory operates, wrote in
The New York Times Book Review that Gardner's argument boiled down to "hunch and opinion" (p. 20). And Gardner's subsequent work has done very little to shift the balance of opinion. A recent issue of
Psychology, Public Policy, and Law devoted to the study of intelligence contained virtually no reference to Gardner's work. Most people who study intelligence view M.I. theory as rhetoric rather than science, and they're divided on the virtues of the rhetoric.
The application of the theory of multiple intelligences varies widely. It runs the gamut from a teacher who, when confronted with a student having difficulties, uses a different approach to teach the material, to an entire school using MI as a framework. In general, those who subscribe to the theory strive to provide opportunities for their students to use and develop all the different intelligences, not just the few at which they naturally excel.
A Harvard-led study of 41 schools using the theory came to the conclusion that in these schools there was "a culture of hard work, respect, and caring; a faculty that collaborated and learned from each other; classrooms that engaged students through constrained but meaningful choices, and a sharp focus on enabling students to produce high-quality work."
Of the schools implementing Gardner's theory, the most well-known is
New City SchoolNew City School is a non-sectarian, co-educational private elementary school in St. Louis, Missouri.- Overview :New City School was founded in 1969 by a group of parents interested in creating a progressive school in metropolitan St. Louis. Today, the school has an enrollment of 350 students age...
, in St. Louis, Missouri, which has been using the theory since 1988. The school's teachers have produced two books for teachers,
Celebrating Multiple Intelligences and
Succeeding With Multiple Intelligences and the principal, Thomas Hoerr, has written
Becoming a Multiple Intelligences School as well as many articles on the practical applications of the theory. The school has also hosted four conferences, each attracting over 200 educators from around the world and remains a valuable resource for teachers interested in implementing the theory in their own classrooms.
Thomas Armstrong considers that Waldorf education organically engages all of Gardner's eight intelligences.
Questions
Questions raised about Gardner's theory include:
- What kind of correlations exist between the intelligences, or are they completely independent?
- Should schools be focusing on teaching to students' strengths or on remediating where they are weak?
- To what extent should students be aware of their profile in the various intelligences?
The definition of intelligence
As one would expect from a theory that redefines
intelligenceIntelligence is an umbrella term used to describe a property of the mind that encompasses many related abilities, such as the capacities to reason, to plan, to solve problems, to think abstractly, to comprehend ideas, to use language, and to learn. There are several ways to define intelligence...
, one of the major criticisms of the theory is that it is
ad hocAd hoc is a Latin phrase which means "for this [purpose]". It generally signifies a solution designed for a specific problem or task, non-generalizable, and which cannot be adapted to other purposes....
. The criticism is that
Gardner-Towns in the United States:*Gardner, Colorado*Gardner, Illinois*Gardner, Kansas*Gardner, Massachusetts*Gardner, North Dakota*Gardner, Wisconsin*Glen Gardner, New Jersey-Geographical features:*Gardner on the Moon...
is not expanding the definition of the word "intelligence"; rather, he denies the existence of
intelligenceIntelligence is an umbrella term used to describe a property of the mind that encompasses many related abilities, such as the capacities to reason, to plan, to solve problems, to think abstractly, to comprehend ideas, to use language, and to learn. There are several ways to define intelligence...
, as is traditionally understood, and instead uses the word "intelligence" whenever other people have traditionally used words like "
abilityAbility may be:* Aptitude* Intelligence* Skill* ExpertAbility may also refer to:* Ability score, in role-playing games* Ability Plus Software, makers of the office suite Ability Office* Ability grouping* ABILITY Magazine* Ability Magazine...
". This practice has been criticized by Robert J. Sternberg (1983, 1991),
EysenckEysenck is a surname, and may refer to*Hans Jürgen Eysenck , psychology professor*Michael Eysenck , psychology professor, son of Hans...
(1994), and Scarr (1985). Defenders of MI theory argue that the traditional definition of intelligence is too narrow, and thus broader definition more accurately reflects the differing ways in which humans think and learn. They would state that the traditional interpretation of intelligence collapses under the weight of its own logic and definition, noting that intelligence is usually defined as the cognitive or mental capacity of an individual, which by logical necessity would include all forms of mental qualities, not simply the ones most transparent to standardized I.Q. tests.
Some of these criticisms arise from the fact that Gardner has not settled on a single definition of intelligence. He originally defined it as the ability to solve problems that have value in at least one culture, or as something that a student is interested in. However, he added a
disclaimerA disclaimer is generally any statement intended to specify or delimit the scope of rights and obligations that may be exercised and enforced by parties in a legally-recognized relationship...
that he has no fixed definition, and his classification is more of an artistic judgment than fact:
Ultimately, it would certainly be desirable to have an algorithmIn mathematics, computing, linguistics, and related subjects, an algorithm is an effective method for solving a problem using a finite sequence of instructions. Algorithms are used for calculation, data processing, and many other fields....
for the selection of an intelligence, such that any trained researcher could determine whether a candidate's intelligence met the appropriate criteria. At present, however, it must be admitted that the selection (or rejection) of a candidate's intelligence is reminiscent more of an artistic judgment than of a scientific assessment. (Gardner, Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences, 1985)
Gardner argues that by calling linguistic and logical-mathematical abilities intelligences, but not artistic, musical, athletic, etc. abilities, the former are needlessly aggrandized. Many critics balk at this widening of the definition, saying that it ignores "the connotation of intelligence...[which] has always connoted the kind of thinking skills that makes one successful in school."
Gardner writes "I balk at the unwarranted assumption that certain human abilities can be arbitrarily singled out as intelligence while others cannot" Critics hold that given this statement, any interest or ability is now redefined as "intelligence". Thus, by adopting this theory, studying intelligence becomes difficult, because it diffuses into the broader concept of ability or talent. Gardner's addition of the naturalistic intelligence and conceptions of the existential and moral intelligences are seen as fruits of this diffusion. Defenders of the MI theory would argue that this is simply a recognition of the broad scope of inherent mental abilities, and that such an exhaustive scope by nature defies a simple, one-dimensional classification such as an assigned IQ value. They would claim that such one-dimensional values are typically of limited value in predicting the real world application of unique mental abilities.
Intellectual relativism
Gardner argues that there are many different kinds of intelligence and that none is better or more important. However, people have differing abilities within these types of intelligences.
Lack of empirical evidence
Some critics argue that many of Gardner's "intelligences" actually correlate with the
g factorThe general intelligence factor is a controversial construct used in the field of psychology to quantify what is common to the scores of all intelligence tests....
, supporting the idea of single dominant type of intelligence. For example, Carroll (1993) argued that verbal comprehension, auditory processing, visual perception and ability in logic and mathematics all correlate with each other and are actually subsets of global intelligence. This gives further support for a theory of a single type intelligence.
A critical review of MI theory argues that there is little empirical evidence to support it:
"To date there have been no published studies that offer evidence of the validity of the multiple intelligences. In 1994 Sternberg reported finding no empirical studies. In 2000 Allix reported finding no empirical validating studies, and at that time Gardner and Connell conceded that there was "little hard evidence for MI theory" (2000, p. 292). In 2004 Sternberg and Grigerenko stated that there were no validating studies for multiple intelligences, and in 2004 Gardner asserted that he would be "delighted were such evidence to accrue" (p. 214), and he admitted that "MI theory has few enthusiasts among psychometricians or others of a traditional psychological background" because they require "psychometric or experimental evidence that allows one to prove the existence of the several intelligences" (2004, p. 214)." (Waterhouse, 2006a, p. 208).
The same review presents evidence to demonstrate that
cognitive neuroscienceCognitive neuroscience is an academic field concerned with the scientific study of biological substrates underlying cognition, with a specific focus on the neural substrates of mental processes. It addresses the questions of how psychological/cognitive functions are produced by the brain...
research does not support the theory of Multiple Intelligences:
"the human brain is unlikely to function via Gardner’s multiple intelligences. Taken together the evidence for the intercorrelations of subskills of IQ measures, the evidence for a shared set of genes associated with mathematics, reading, and g, and the evidence for shared and overlapping “what is it?” and “where is it?” neural processing pathways, and shared neural pathways for language, music, motor skills, and emotions suggest that it is unlikely that that each of Gardner’s intelligences could operate “via a different set of neural mechanisms” (1999, p. 99). Equally important, the evidence for the “what is it?” and “where is it?” processing pathways, for Kahneman’s two decision-making systems, and for adapted cognition modules suggests that these cognitive brain specializations have evolved to address very specific problems in our environment. Because Gardner claimed that that the intelligences are innate potentialities related to a general content area, MI theory lacks a rationale for the phylogenetic emergence of the intelligences." (From Waterhouse, 2006a, p. 213).
A number of articles have surveyed the use of Gardner's ideas and conclude that there is no evidence that his ideas work in practice. Steven A. Stahl found that most of the previous studies which claimed to show positive results had major flaws:
- Among others, Marie Carbo claims that her learning styles work is based on research. {I discuss Carbo because she publishes extensively on her model and is very prominent in the workshop circuit...} But given the overwhelmingly negative findings in the published research, I wondered what she was citing, and about a decade ago, I thought it would be interesting to take a look. Reviewing her articles, I found that out of 17 studies she had cited, only one was published. Fifteen were doctoral dissertations and 13 of these came out of one university—St. John’s University in New York, Carbo’s alma mater. None of these had been in a peer-refereed journal. When I looked closely at the dissertations and other materials, I found that 13 of the 17 studies that supposedly support her claim had to do with learning styles based on something other than modality.
See also
- Intelligence
Intelligence is an umbrella term used to describe a property of the mind that encompasses many related abilities, such as the capacities to reason, to plan, to solve problems, to think abstractly, to comprehend ideas, to use language, and to learn. There are several ways to define intelligence...
- Intelligence quotient
An intelligence quotient, or IQ, is a score derived from one of several different standardized tests designed to assess intelligence. The term "IQ", from the German Intelligenz-Quotient, was coined by the German psychologist William Stern in 1912 as a proposed method of scoring early modern...
- General intelligence factor
The general intelligence factor is a controversial construct used in the field of psychology to quantify what is common to the scores of all intelligence tests....
- Emotional intelligence
Emotional Intelligence describes the ability, capacity, skill or, in the case of the trait EI model, a self-perceived ability, to identify, assess, and manage the emotions of one's self, of others, and of groups. Different models have been proposed for the definition of EI and disagreement exists...
- Social IQ
- Triarchic theory of intelligence
The Triarchic Theory of Intelligence was formulated by Robert J. Sternberg, a prominent figure in the research of human intelligence. The theory by itself was groundbreaking in that it was among the first to go against the psychometric approach to intelligence and take a more cognitive approach...
- Robert Sternberg
Robert Jeffrey Sternberg , is an American psychologist and psychometrician and the Dean of Arts and Sciences at Tufts University. He was formerly IBM Professor of Psychology and Education at Yale University and the President of the American Psychological Association. He is a member of the editorial...