Is There 'Spiritual Intelligence'? An Evaluation of Strong and Weak Proposals
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 3539140 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Fraser Watts (0000-0003-0717-0259, International Society for Science and Religion), Marius Dorobantu (0000-0002-3680-134X, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2023 |
| Volume | 14 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 265 |
| Publication date | 2023-02-16 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Religions (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2077-1444 • E-ISSN: 2077-1444 |
| Publisher | MDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT) |
| DOI | 10.3390/rel14020265 |
| OpenAlex | W4321093584 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 24 |
The debate about whether, and in what sense, there is 'spiritual intelligence' remains unresolved. We suggest it will be helpful to make a distinction between strong and weak versions of the claim. The strong version proposes that there is a separate and distinct spiritual intelligence that meets the criteria set out by Howard Gardner in his 'multiple intelligences' framework. This involves evidence from neuroscience, evolutionary psychology, cognitive psychology, developmental psychology, individual differences, experimental tasks, and psychometrics. We review the relevant evidence and conclude that there is no support for the strong proposal. The weak version of the claim assumes that the intelligence that is apparent in spiritual contexts is the same as is found elsewhere, but it is nevertheless deployed in a distinctive way. We suggest that the evidence supports the claim, and we review six key marks of spiritual intelligence: ineffability, embodiment, open-minded attention, pattern-seeking meaning-making, participation, and relationality. Our approach makes use of a cognitive architecture, Interacting Cognitive Subsystems (ICS), which has been proved useful in modelling spiritual practices. It will be helpful in the future to bring this approach into dialogue with other scientific approaches to spiritual intelligence from psychometrics and from experimental research
Cognition · Cognitive psychology · Cognitive science · Emotional intelligence · Epistemology · Psychotherapist · Spiritual intelligence · Computer Science · Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion · Philosophy · Psychology · Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology · Social Psychology · Workplace Spirituality and Leadership
The Varieties of Spiritual Experience
The varieties of religious experience
Metaphors We Live By
Intelligence without representation
Human-Level, but Non-Humanlike
Religion as an embodied practice
A Viable Model and Self-Report Measure of Spiritual Intelligence
Does Spiritual Intelligence (SI) Exist? A Theoretical Investigation of a Tool Useful for Finding the Meaning of Life
Transcendence, religion and social bonding
The Threefold Nature of Spirituality (TNS) in a Psychological Cognitive Framework
The evolution of religious cognition
Is Spirituality an Intelligence? Motivation, Cognition, and the Psychology of Ultimate Concern
A Case Against Spiritual Intelligence
Spiritual Intelligence or Spiritual Consciousness
Spiritual Intelligence as a Theory of Individual Religion
Spirituality and Intelligence
| Unique citing works | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1 |
| Citation span | 2026 - 2026 (1) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 1 |