Spatial intelligence: what is it and how can it be improved?

This type of intelligence can be improved with specific exercises.

The spatial intelligence is a concept derived from the Theory of Multiple Intelligences proposed by psychologist Howard Gardner. This type of intelligence can be defined as the set of mental abilities directly related to the navigation and rotation of objects in our mind (i.e., their imaginary visualization). (i.e., their imaginary visualization from different angles). Therefore, spatial intelligence is so called because it is involved in solving spatial problems, whether real or imaginary.

Our success in tasks such as driving and parking a car depends on our level of spatial intelligence. tasks such as driving and parking a car, building a model, finding one's way around, giving instructions to another person who sees us, and so on.giving instructions to another person who sees things from another angle, or handling more or less complex tools.

Other less frequent activities in which spatial intelligence is strongly involved are, for example, those in which a shape must be sculpted in a material or a plan of a structure must be made. Therefore, both architects and sculptors tend to architects as well as sculptors tend to show a good level of this type of intelligence..

Spatial intelligence and vision

One thing we must keep in mind when understanding the concept of spatial intelligence is that, as such, it does not depend on our ability to see at a distance, does not depend on our ability to see through our eyes.. The determining factor in spatial intelligence is to be able to imagine a three-dimensional space that maintains its coherence over time regardless of the angle from which it is viewed mentally.

Of course, sight is one of the most important senses when it comes to learning what our environment is like, but people who are born blind can also use spatial intelligence thanks to the information about the environment that comes to them through hearing, touch, etc.

Can spatial intelligence be improved?

As is often the case when discussing the subject of intelligence, many people tend to think that these types of mental abilities are innate and are determined by genetic inheritance.. In the case of spatial intelligence, moreover, there is the fact that several investigations seem to suggest that men have somewhat superior spatial abilities when compared to the opposite sex.

However, spatial intelligence can be improved with some training, as can spatial intelligence.as is the case with intelligence in general.

It has been shown that practicing exercises similar to those used to assess the level of spatial intelligence is practical for improving this dimension of cognitive abilities. These exercises consist, for example, of spatial rotation tasks, comparison of two objects placed in different positions that may be the same or only which may be the same or only similar, spatial attention to various stimuli, etc.

So... how to improve it?

The specific exercises that have proven to be effective in improving spatial intelligence are hardly accessible from home, and belong in any case to training programs run by specialists. However, this does not mean that we can not include in our daily life some tasks that emulate the logic used in these laboratory tests. To do so, we need only just take into account what spatial intelligence is and put some creativity into it. creativity.

For example, driving a car on a regular (and safe) basis can help, since we have to take into account the location of all parts of its surface. Learning to plan the placement of figures in drawings created by us also involves the challenge of distributing objects that, although two-dimensional, occupy space. The same goes for somewhat more demanding (and costly) tasks, such as carving a figure out of a block of wood. Any of these activities strengthen our cognitive skills linked to spatial and visual intelligence.

Similarly, there are games whose mechanics are directly related to testing spatial skills and, by extension, spatial intelligence. Among the traditional games, we could name, for example, the tangrams and Rubik's cubes. On the other hand, some examples of videogames that pose a special challenge to our spatial intelligence could be Portal, Antichamber or Q.U.B.E.although classic three-dimensional platform games such as Super Mario Galaxy can also do well, since you have to take into account the position of the camera, the position of the character and the location where you want to land on each jump.

Let it not be said that exercising intelligence is boring!

Bibliographical references:

• Gardner, H. (2006). Multiple Intelligences: New Horizons In Theory And Practice.
• Tzuriel, D. and Egozi, G (2010). Gender Differences in Spatial Ability of Young Children: The Effects of Training and Processing Strategies. Child Development. 81(5): 1417 - 1430.