Naturalistic intelligence: what does it consist of and what is it for?

Thanks to the psychologist and pedagogue Howard Gardner, we were able to learn that there was not only one type of intelligence, but rather eight! Until then, attention had been drawn to logical-mathematical and linguistic intelligence (especially in schools and in intelligence assessments). Luckily, today we know that there are many more; one of them is naturalistic intelligence.

This type of intelligence has to do with our ability to relate to the environment and its elements; allows us to observe nature, understand it, classify and order itin addition to establishing relationships between its elements (flora and fauna, for example).

It is surely one of the least known, and above all, one of the least valued at an academic level. However, as we will see, it is surely the intelligence that helped our ancestors to better understand their environment and survive. Learn this and other curious facts about her, here!

Naturalistic intelligence: what does it consist of and what is it for?

Naturalistic intelligence is part of the theory of multiple intelligences proposed by the psychologist and pedagogue Howard Gardner (United States, 1943), a theory developed and disseminated in the 80s. Specifically, the theory dates back to 1983, but it was not until 1995 when naturalistic intelligence was added to the model.

What does the concept of naturalistic intelligence refer to? It is the ability to categorize elements of the environment, recognizing their differences and the way in which they relate to each other, in order to use this information to interact with these elements in a beneficial way.

On the other hand, The connections and relationships that this type of intelligence allows us with the elements of the environment can help us improve the interaction we have with said environment.. In reality, this concept encompasses the urban, suburban and rural context, that is, not only the “natural environment.”

Objective: survive

Naturalistic intelligence is probably the one that most helped our antecedents to evolve, to adapt to the environment, to exert influence on it and, ultimately, to survive. In fact, for these reasons, some experts have placed its origin in the Paleolithic era.

Beyond the fact of surviving, today this intelligence allows us to know nature better and develop hierarchies within the natural systems themselves, very useful for depending on what fields of knowledge (for example in biology).

Celebrities with naturalistic intelligence

Who possesses (or rather, possessed) a high naturalistic intelligence? For example the naturalist scientist Charles Darwin (Shrewsbury, 1809 – Down House, 1882), or the geographer and naturalist Friedrich Heinrich Alexander (Berlin, 1769 – 1859).

These authors were able to enter natural environments and learn from them, identifying their animal and plant species, learning their defining characteristics and using the information for their own benefit and that of society. And that is precisely what naturalistic intelligence is about.

Defining characteristics

In Gardner’s definition of naturalistic intelligence, Much emphasis is given to the type of information that is worked with based on this intelligence (and not so much what is done with said information). It is true that this intelligence is talked about as a process, but above all about the specific content that can be treated through it.

These contents refer, as we have said, to the elements of nature, to the anatomical particularities of each of the plants and animals that we observe, etc. Thus, we will activate naturalistic intelligence when we find ourselves in a natural environment or in a space with different forms of life and living beings.

Processes involved

What mental processes are activated when we use naturalistic intelligence? Mainly observation, selective and sustained attention, classification and categorization skills, making inferences and identifying relationships, as well as formulating hypotheses related to the environment.

On the other hand, it is a type of intelligence that allows us to experiment and orient ourselves towards nature, which in turn can help us know it better and value it more. That is, if we get a little philosophical, naturalistic intelligence is also related to the appreciation of beauty and love for the environment.

Overlapping with other intelligences?

Naturalistic intelligence could overlap, in some cases, with other types of intelligence proposed by Gardner. For example, in the case of linguistic intelligence; Is it true that we use the latter to conceptualize the identified elements, even though they come from nature?

On the other hand, Logical-mathematical intelligence allows us to understand hierarchies and categorizationss that we have developed thanks to naturalistic intelligence. As we see, these last two could even complement each other. Finally, to give another example, in the case of spatial intelligence, this would help us to apply all the knowledge “obtained” thanks to naturalistic intelligence, in a specific environment and in real time.

In short, naturalistic intelligence is not by far one of the best known, but it is undoubtedly one of those that most influenced our ancestors when it came to surviving and adapting to the environment. As a curious fact, although many areas of the brain are involved in exercising it, It is generally considered to be more closely related to the right hemisphere. than with the left.

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