Multiple intelligences in the shadow of AI: a validation study with Chinese elementary students

The rapid development of artificial intelligence have once again brought the concept of intelligence into the spotlight. Public discourse surrounding these technologies often conceptualizes intelligence as a unified, one-dimensional construct, overlooking a substantial body of research suggesting that intelligence manifests in multiple, distinct forms. This exploratory study aimed to validate an instrument designed to measure multiple intelligences among Chinese elementary school students (N = 4,031) and to map the intelligence profiles of the participants. To determine the dimensionality of the instrument, exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were conducted. The results supported the existence of eight distinct dimensions of intelligence among Chinese primary school learners, consistent with Gardner’s theoretical framework. Furthermore, the study compared boys’ and girls’ self-reported assessments of intelligence to examine whether the “male hubris – female humility” effect could be observed across the eight dimensions. The findings indicated that boys reported higher levels of logical – mathematical intelligence, whereas girls demonstrated significantly higher self-assessments in verbal – linguistic, bodily – kinesthetic, and interpersonal intelligences.