The 7 types of intelligence and how to develop them

By Guest Contributor | January 5, 2016

Howard Gardner, a Harvard psychologist and educator, who studied in depth the different learning styles, conclude in his research that there are seven types of “intelligence” related to seven compartments of the brain. According to him, we use all these 7 types of intelligence but there is one that dominates the others and through which we learn better. You see now why it is important for you to identify your major type of intelligence, and use it to learn more quickly and in a much efficient manner.

 

THE 7 TYPES OF INTELLIGENCE

LINGUISTIC INTELLIGENCE

It is the ability to juggle words: If you like to read, write and love to tell stories; and generally find it easy to play Scrabble type word games or quizzes, then you need to exploit it if you want to learn faster and better.

 

How to develop it: Crossword puzzles, word games, palindromes (groups of words that can be read either left to right or right to left)… Why not write your own history book ? Take the habit to write your days before going to bed. Record stories on tape and then transcribe them. Your learning must be a concrete text in hands preferably written by you, which will facilitate the learning.

 

THE LOGICAL-MATHEMATICAL INTELLIGENCE

It is the ability to think abstractly and logically: these individuals goes straight to the facts, cutting all nontechnical words and poetry. They enjoy puzzles and chess; computers also fit well with this dominant intelligence. Such a

person is constantly in search of structures and relationships between words and ideas in a text.

 

How to develop it: You could do algorithms (transcribe a problem in a set of instructions in order to solve it), maths, strategic games…etc.

 

SPATIAL/VISUAL INTELLIGENCE

It is the ability to visualize: these individuals invent things, love making plans, know how to read maps, and seem to have an inner GPS system. These people usually have a creative mind, many of them eventually develop an interest in machinery systems and networks.

 

How to develop it: Individuals demonstrating spatial intelligence need visual cues to guide their reading. So it would be clever to create texts using words and images: a letter in the form of bonding, for example. You could also play maze games, visualizein details a scene of your choice…etc.

 

MUSICAL INTELLIGENCE

It is the ability to “seize” the rhythm and the music sounds: these individuals have an excellent musical ear, they got the rhythm, they like to sing or play an instrument. They usually are the first to notice the birds singing.

 

How to develop it: This type of person will take advantage of everything that is connected directly or indirectly to music. You could transcribe lyrics of your favorite tunes, play an instrument, listen to classical/instrumental music while studying… researches have found that listening to music while studying activates both hemispheres of the brain: the right via music, and the left by doing math or any logical exercises. You could also use your favorite melody and sing what you are about to memorize!

 

BODILY-KINESTHETIC INTELLIGENCE

It is the ability to play sports and dance, These individuals instinctively know how to move their body. Kinesthetic or tactile learning is a learning style in which learning takes place by the students carrying out physical activities, rather than listening to a lecture or watching demonstrations. People with a preference for kinesthetic learning are also commonly known as “do-ers”.

 

How to develop it: Writing, working at a computer, typing, walking while learning, using your fingers in symbols to memorize…etc. Anything that will stimulate your tactile sense is welcome.

 

SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE

Or Interpersonal intelligence, is the ability to interact with people: these people are very sociable and tend to be excellent organizers in their community. However, they can be both very manipulators while good mediators in conflicts. They also value teamwork.

 

 

How to develop it: If you identify yourself having this type intelligence, you may consider studying in a group, find a community of eager learner and associate with them. Or you could simply visualize an imaginary meeting with people you respect and value and engage with them.

 

INTRAPERSONAL INTELLIGENCE

Or emotional intelligence, it is the ability to feel assured and be comfortable working alone. These individuals are more introverts than those with the interpersonal intelligence, and therefore prefer individual work to teamwork. They usually have a greater control over their emotions.

 

How to develop it: One great technique for improving this type of intelligence, is through the practice of mindfulness meditation. Watch this complete guide. You could also for a whole month, with intervals of 3 hours during the day (use your smartphone to schedule this), take notes on how you feel: relax, stop thinking, and transcribe your feelings of the moment. This will dramatically increase your emotional intelligence and self awareness.

 

WHY THE EDUCATION SYSTEM IS FAILING

Thomas Armstrong, In his book In Their Own Way, draws our attention to the fact that school systems focuses only on two of the seven types of intelligence, namely the linguistic intelligence and the logical-mathematical intelligence. Individuals who learn best otherwise are therefore penalized and may slip through the fingers of the education system … The key to success, regardless of the learning style of the learner, it is his involvement in all the seven types of intelligence.

 

A QUESTION THAT WILL HELP YOU RECOGNIZE YOUR LEARNING STYLE

This is not an easy task! It takes a lot of observation and inner work. The following questions may help you determine your learning style.

 

If you wanted to learn to dance the waltz or the tango how you would go?

• The linguistic style will perhaps talk to someone who knows waltz and will ask questions.
• The logical-mathematical style may wish to see a chart showing the different successions of steps.
• The visual/spatial style will surely enjoy watching and trying different basic steps.
• The musical style will probably listen to the music first and then imagine the steps before tackling written explanations.
• The kinesthetic style would look for a partner to teach him. “Do-ers”.
• The interpersonal style would sign up for a dance classes.
• The intrapersonal style would probably buy some books or programs and practice alone in front of his mirror.

 

“Multiple intelligences is a psychological theory about the mind. It’s a critique of the notion that there’s a single intelligence which we’re born with, which can’t be changed, and which psychologists can measure. It’s based on a lot of scientific research in fields ranging from psychology to anthropology to biology. It’s not based upon based on test correlations, which most other intelligence theories are based on. The claim is that there are at least eight different human intelligences. Most intelligence tests look at language or logic or both – those are just two of the intelligences. The other six are musical, spatial, bodily/kinesthetic, interpersonal, intrapersonal, and naturalist. I make two claims. The first claim is that all human beings have all of these intelligences. It’s part of our species definition. The second claim is that, both because of our genetics and our environment, no two people have exactly the same profile of intelligences, not even identical twins, because their experiences are different.” Dr. Howard Gardner.

 

BOOKS RECOMMENDATION

Accelerated Learning Techniques – Brian Tracy

The Silva Mind Control Method – Jose Silva

In Their Own Way: Discovering and Encouraging Your Child’s Multiple Intelligences – Thomas Armstrong

Evolve Your Brain: The Science of Changing Your Mind – Joe Dispenza Article Submission, Amit Goswami

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Benblidia Mohamed Walid – computer scientist, musician, and blogger for a better world.  Member of ArtilcesFactory