8 Intelligences: Are You a Jack of All Trades or a Master of One? | Howard Gardner | Big Think

Main ideas and concepts (Howard Gardner’s “Intelligences”)

• Gardner argues there are 8 intelligences he is confident about, with a few additional ones he has considered.
• He contrasts standardized tests (which mostly reward only a couple intelligences) with real-world success, which depends on a broader range of abilities.
• He emphasizes that focusing on just one “intelligence” can be limiting, and that decisions about development are ultimately value judgments, not something science alone can dictate.

The (core) intelligences Gardner describes

1. Linguistic intelligence

   • Ability to use language effectively.
   • Examples: poets, writers, journalists, orators.

2. Logical-mathematical intelligence

   • Ability to reason logically and handle mathematical/scientific thinking.
   • Examples: logicians, mathematicians, scientists; doing proofs and scientific reasoning/experimentation.

3. Musical intelligence

   • Ability to appreciate music and to produce/conduct it using voice or instruments.
   • Gardner argues it’s an intelligence because talent/ability with tones, rhythms, timbres can be distinct from language ability.
   • He suggests music has been important across cultures historically.

4. Spatial intelligence

   • Ability to work with and navigate spatial environments.
   • Two varieties:
     • Near-space handling: e.g., chess players, surgeons.
     • Large-territory navigation: e.g., airplane pilots, sea captains.

5. Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence

   • Two varieties:
     • Using the whole body to solve problems or make things (athletes, dancers).
     • Using the hands/parts of the body to solve problems or make things (craft professionals).

6. Interpersonal intelligence

   • Understanding other people: motivating, leading, cooperating, working with others.
   • Needed in workplaces with others; leaders ideally have a lot.
   • Gardner notes it can be used in harmful/predatory ways (e.g., a manipulative salesman).

7. Intrapersonal intelligence

   • Understanding yourself.
   • Gardner links its importance to modern life: people choose careers, switch paths, and may not rely on family traditions.
   • Without self-understanding, people may struggle more in adulthood.

8. Naturalist intelligence (added later)

   • Capacity to make meaningful distinctions in nature (plants, animals).
   • Gardner uses Charles Darwin as an example.
   • He argues it’s still widely used today even when people don’t engage with wilderness:
     • e.g., choosing between jackets/sweaters/hair styles involves discriminating between categories (the brain repurposes/adapts old systems for new tasks).

Additional intelligences Gardner mentions as possibilities

• Pedagogical (teaching) intelligence

  • Ability to teach effectively.
  • Evidence/intuition he offers: even very young children (around 3–4) can teach.
  • Example mechanism: when explaining to younger vs. older people, children adjust detail and speaking style.

• Existential intelligence

  • Intelligence focused on “big questions”: philosophical and artistic questions about love, death, the future, etc.
  • Gardner claims (in his view) humans uniquely sustain this kind of questioning.
  • He contrasts:
    • Children asking “why” (often less focused on answers)
    • Philosophers/advanced thinkers (more deeply interested in how questions are addressed)

How to apply the framework: play to strengths vs. bolster weaknesses

Gardner frames the “big question” as a value judgment, offering no purely scientific rule.

Instruction-like decision guidance (as stated in the subtitles)

• If you want to be a “jack of all trades” (well-rounded):

  • Nurture intelligences you are not strong in (i.e., strengthen weaker areas).

• If you want to reach the top in a specific domain:

  • Accentuate the intelligences you are already strong in (i.e., push your strongest abilities).

• When parents ask what to do for a child:

  • Ask what the child and/or parent wants the child to do.
  • Prefer the child’s own interests over a one-size-fits-all prescription.
  • Gardner says science cannot decide the values-based choice between general development and specialization.

Gardner’s stance on “extra” intelligence labels

• He doubts the existence of “humor intelligence” as a separate intelligence.
  • Instead, he suggests humor is the logical intelligence applied in a distinctive way (using expectation and reversal).
• He also disputes examples like “cooking intelligence,” “humor intelligence,” and “sexual intelligence” as separate intelligences, implying he doesn’t endorse those labels as distinct intelligence categories.

---

Speakers / sources featured

• Howard Gardner (speaker; credited via the video title “Howard Gardner | Big Think”)