The Four Intelligences

By Harry J. Chong
(Philosophy, Psychology)

Chapter 1

Roman Emperor, Marcus Aurelius, once said, “Your life is what your thoughts make
it.” That was almost 2,000 years ago! But does that phrase still hold true today?
Absolutely. We, as human beings, are defined by our thoughts. It is what makes us
different from others animals; we think, we contemplate, we ponder, and we strive on our
capacity to reason. So, it is a duly statement to say that our intelligence is of the utmost
important. Without our defining capability to utilize the mind, without science and
without cognizance, we could not be where we are today.
That is why, for success, it is critical to question one’s intellect—to improve, and to
change. But how does one go about improving one’s intellect? There are ways: Reading,
writing, engaging in the sciences. But, specifically, how does an individual go about
improving overall intelligence? How does a person expand their mind?
The first step is in identifying strengths and weaknesses. The first step is finding out
where one excels and one lacks.
Many school children today find that they are overwhelmed with information, and
they believe that learning is difficult. They are unaware of why the struggle. The reason
why they struggle is because they are not well rounded. Most people are only good at one
thing, unfortunately. This often breeds a mind that believes it is inferior for not being able
to grok/master a subject that is out of their realm. But the human brain is capable of doing
nearly anything that requires deep thought, skill, and fortitude.
Still, many people, especially in the education “business,” are aware of these
problems. Teachers (see pedagogy for more about teaching) are aware of the ups and
downs, and the pitfalls of teaching a variety of students. Each individual, each kid has
their own set of problems. So, it is without surprise that modern and progressive schools
employ several methods of teaching in order to “transfer” along information.
This practice, however, does not ring true for most schools (public schools in
particular). Teachers, or professors, tend to have one method. This is why children, and
young adults, have a hard time digging their claws into a subject. They feel drowned, and
left out. When a teacher resorts to a single way of teaching (a common example is
oration), the student loses out. Anyone who is weak or lacking in that particular method
of learning, which the teacher uses, is going to fall behind in a significant manner.
So, is it your fault for being stupid? No. You are not stupid. The problem is schools
are stretched for time, and do not have the resources to cater to all students, and their
needs. Ideally, teaching and learning should be customized to an individuals needs, but
they usually are not. Teachers have too many things to juggle, and too many kids to
teach. It’s not their fault (or your fault) that you are not learning properly.
Right. So, what to do about your dilemma? Well, you as an individual could either
change the system to help address the needs of everyone around you—or you can simply
adapt. You can strengthen your intelligence to help you excel academically or career-
wise. As mentioned earlier, the first part is identifying strengths and weaknesses in your
intelligence.
Well, first of all, what is intelligence? We all know when someone isn’t intelligent, but
do we really know when someone is smart? That is a harder thing to identify. Yes.
Someone may excel on an IQ test (intelligence quotient test), but that does not
necessarily mean that they will succeed in their intended career/life choice. A lot of times
people with lower IQs excel (monetarily) even when the paper results say they should
fail. There is a paradox, or at least incongruence, between real life and abstract (school)
life. Good in one. Bad in the other.
…But why not be good in both areas? Why not be good, or at least competent, in
everything you do? Is that not possible? Has the notion of the renaissance man/woman
died?
Well, a renaissance man/woman (or a well-rounded person) cannot exist if they do not
identify (and correct) the strengths and weaknesses of their intellectual capabilities. That
is why, in 1983, Howard Gardner proposed the idea of multiple intelligences in order to
address this problem. He posited that there are different types of intelligences, and that
traditional IQ tests do not measure a person’s overall, true intelligence. According to him,
today, there are eight main types: linguistic, logic-mathematical, musical, spatial, bodily
kinesthetic, naturalist, interpersonal and intrapersonal.
These definitions of intelligence, however, are somewhat confusing. And in regards to
academia, they do not address the issue of adaptation. How does a person skilled in music
use his/her abilities to write a paper? How does a bodily kinesthetic individual do a math
question? Society does not work in a way that’s suited to someone who thrives in a
(seemingly) esoteric ability. Intelligence, by most counts, is traditionally defined. Hence,
that is what this article addresses. How does one go about enhancing “traditional
intelligence”?
This may seem like taking a step backward, reducing the amount of intelligences by
half, but it takes a broader sense of the issue, and simplifies the concept into something
concrete which everyone should understand.
You may have heard of the left-brain/right-brain theory. Well, the idea posits that the
brain has two hemispheres (sections). There is the left side of the brain and the right side
of the brain. The left side is stronger in areas concerning: reality, future and past, logic,
details, facts, rules, language, math, science, pattern perception, and names. The right
side specializes in: abstract concepts, the present, imagination, symbols, images, beliefs,
spatial perception, object functions, and emotions.
Now, how does this all fit in with what you’re presently reading? Well, in regards to
the brain’s hemispheres, on each side are two intelligences each—making four in total.
The four (broad) intelligences are: memory (left), logic (left), creative (right), and
emotional (right). Combined, these make up what is found in traditional intelligence. Any
person who has mastered all of these areas will be very successful (particularly in the
academic arena).
(The numbers assigned to each intelligence is for organization, and is not indicative of
its importance. All are EQUALLY important.)

1. Memory – This is the most basic part of intelligence. It is simply your ability to recall
what you have seen, heard, or experienced. Most schools stress having a good memory,
mostly by rote-learning. Memory, of course, encompasses and influences all
intelligences.

2. Logic – This aids in solving puzzles and problems. It does not necessarily require
memorization, but instead calls on the brain’s ability to reason, and to put the pieces
together.

3. Creative – Further “down the line” is creativity. Creative is far removed from the
intelligences memory and logic. While those require dealing with reality, creativity often
calls upon what is not yet in existence. High creativity, as one would guess, is incredibly
pertinent to the world of art.

4. Emotional – Most people don’t put any emphasis at all on emotional intelligence. They
think it should just be there. But emotional intelligence, like any other intelligence, must
be properly developed. Emotional intelligence deals with your interactions with others,
and with yourself. Highly developed emotional intelligence confers the benefits of
fortitude, discipline, and balance—which can further the other forms of intelligence.
Have you ever met a really smart but lazy person? That is a person with low(er)
emotional intelligence. If they, however, had high emotional intelligence, they would
excel further with their natural abilities by being able to manage themselves in a proper
manner.

As you can see below (in figure 1.0), the four intelligences are represented in a
“foursquare.” They are divided into left and right (corresponding with the brain’s
hemispheres). On the left side you have memory and logic, both of which are
complementary to each other. Then on the right, there is creative and emotional, which—
like memory and logic together—also complement each other.
And, as you may have noticed, the intelligences are also opposing one another
(horizontally). While memory is the opposite of creativity, logic is the opposite of
emotional.

Figure 1.0 – Intelligence Foursquare

(Left) (Right)
---------------------------------------------
- MEMORY | CREATIVE -
- LOGIC | EMOTIONAL -
---------------------------------------------

Figure 1.1 – Further Clarification

“Memory + Logic = Stronger (Intellect)

Creative + Emotional = Stronger

Memory + Creative = Weaker

Logic + Emotional = Weaker
Memory + Logic = Neutral
Logic + Creative = Neutral”
Above (figure 1.1) you can see, clearer, how the intelligences interact. Now, of course,
this isn’t written in stone. There are always exceptions to the rule, but, in general there,
are positive and negative reactions depending on your intellectual strengths. Let’s first
look at the conflicting ones. Why does memory work against creativity? Well, creativity
requires a freeness of mind, and it also requires the creation of new things. When you are
well learned, ironically, you are more prone to failing in the creativity department. Your
memorization of the past, and all things before, stems your ability to stumble upon
something new, because for the fact that you have been so heavily influenced.
Then there is logic against emotions. Being emotionally strong (or being perceived as
such) sometimes requires that you throw out logic. If you had a fight with a spouse or
significant other for example, you would have to control your temper, be calm, be cool,
and react in such a way that would be seen as mature (and emotionally intelligent)—even
if you are right, and you know it, emotional intelligence may require that you go against
what is correct for the sake of your relationship. Now, it’s not to say that you should roll
over like a dog in relationship, it’s just to say that sometimes you have to pick and choose
your battles, and always being right and logical won’t work all the time.
So, you’re still wondering—how will this all help me?
Success, of course, requires being balance in your life. And the best balance you can
achieve is through your mental well being and intellect. This requires you to find your
strengths and weaknesses. In which areas of intellect do you excel: Memory, logic,
creative, or emotional. Once you find out which one (or two) or these need to be fixed,
you can then go on to improving them and achieve a balance in your intelligence.
Okay, before we move on, let’s briefly cover QUALITY of intelligence.
There are three main factors here: SPEED and ABSORPTION and DURATION.
(S.A.D.) This just means how fast you can learn something, how much of it you can
absorb and for how long.

Let’s look at the quality of memory intelligence through an anecdotal example:

Alfred and Zoe are reading a novel of about 1,000 pages. Let’s call it “Twilight Potter.”

Speed…
-Alfred can read a page a minute
-Zoe can read a page every half minute (30 seconds)

Absorption…
-Alfred remembers 75% of what he reads
-Zoe remembers 50% of what she reads

Duration…
-Of what Alfred absorbs, he remembers it for about one year
-Of what Zoe remembers, she remembers it for about two years

NOW, let’s delve in further and do some calculations.

Speed…
-It takes Alfred 1,000 minutes to read the novel its entirety
-It takes Zoe 500 minutes to read the novel in its entirety.

Absorption…

-Alfred remembers 75% of what he reads (short-term) or 750 novel pages

-Zoe remembers 50% or 500 novel pages

Duration
-After the initial period of reading, Alfred has a (long-term) duration of about a year or
365 days.
-For Zoe it is 730 days

(Note: Absorption and Duration are closely related—which causes some conflict and
confusion. If, for example, you remembered 100% of something for a one second—
would that really count as remembering it 100%? Probably not. Absorption, in our
regard, pertains to short-term memory [but not micro-memory]! So, we must assume that
a person remembers what they’ve absorbed for at least the day or ‘till the end of the
activity. Duration is more in reference to LONG TERM memory. So, with the term
absorption, it’s mandatory to assume some sort of “duration.” In this it will apply to short
term memory.)

Further calculations.

Alfred
1,000 Minute Read Speed (of 1,000 page novel)
750 Page Absorption
365 Days Duration

750 divided by 1000 = 0.75 pages a minute (to remember 100%)

Therefore 0.75 x 1000 (length of a novel) = True Read Speed of 750 minutes
750 divided by 365 = 2.05

Zoe
500 Minute Read Speed
500 Page Absorption
730 Days Duration

500 divided by 500 = 1.00 page a minute (to remember 100%)

Therefore 1.00 x 1000 (length of a novel) = True Read Speed of 1,000 minutes
1,000 divided by 730 = 1.36
(Per Day Zoe can remember, per day, approximately—100%—1.36 pages.)
Whew! Okay! So, now, which do you think is better? Well, one isn’t necessarily better
than the other (depending on your goals), but a lower number is more ideal. Don’t worry
if you don’t understand this now. It is just an arbitrary formula for reading. There are
other things to remember which are far less quantitative.

Figure 2.0 – Quality of Intelligence

Speed + Absorption + Duration = Quality

Chapter 2