Conversational Intelligence
To say that some of us humans have a higher “conversational intelligence” than others seems easily observable. Conventional wisdom, however, suggests that a person adept at conversation merely “has the gift of gab.”
The scientific evidence supports the conclusion that there are differing potentials among individuals for developing conversational abilities, and in this article I am therefore coining the term “conversational intelligence.”
Nearly two decades ago (1983), Professor Howard Gardner of Harvard published his now classic “Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences,” in which he provided research support for the notion of seven specific intelligences. These are not mere “talents” or “gifts,” but separate intelligences, including: musical, bodily-kinesthetic, linguistic, spatial, logical-mathematical, interpersonal, and intrapersonal. Of these seven, the two intelligences that make up one's “conversational intelligence” are the linguistic and the interpersonal.
In “Intelligence Reframed: Multiple Intelligences for the 21st Century” (1999), Gardner writes that “linguistic intelligence involves sensitivity to spoken and written language, the ability to learn languages, and the capacity to use language to accomplish certain goals. Interpersonal intelligence denotes a person's capacity to understand the intentions, motivations, and desires of other people and, consequently, to work effectively with others.” It is these two distinct but related intelligences that comprise what I am calling “conversational intelligence.”
(By an “intelligence,” Gardner means an innate capacity, “a biopsychological potential” of a person. Most individuals exhibit and are strong in several of these potential intelligences. Very rare people are strong in all seven.)
Clearly related – but not quite the same – is the “Emotional Intelligence”concept described by Daniel Goleman in several books, as “a different way of being smart.” According to Goleman, our EQ determines our potential for learning the practical skills of emotional competence: Self-awareness, motivation, self-regulation, empathy, and adeptness in relationships (“Working with Emotional Intelligence,” 1998).
Although we can observe all seven of the multiple intelligences in society, our schools honor and reward mainly two of them – linguistic and logical-mathematical. A Pablo Picasso or Michael Jordan, not good at taking timed tests, might be average students. A Yehudi Menuhin, whose school offers the 3 Rs but no music, doesn't excel. The old notion persists that if you can't score solidly on the SATs, “you're not very intelligent.”
I do not want to get off on a rant here about how slowly societies recognize break-through ideas. And so it ever was. What I hope is that you, the reader, begin to think differently about the implications and consequences of “multiple intelligences” and, specifically, of a “conversational intelligence.”
For example, people in leadership positions generally must rely on conversational intelligence to guide their people, to learn what's what, to inspire and enthuse. Yet, as it turns out, selection of leaders is often done mainly on the basis of resumes and formal credentials rather than observed interpersonal performance. The now disgraced (but still fabulously rich) “Chainsaw Al” Dunlap, former CEO of Sunbeam Corporation, had such an abrasive and toxic manner that he evoked genuine hatred among employees. He had been hired for purely short-term profit reasons. (As well, he had managed to hide certain facts from his business past – such as having been fired several times.)
Due to “up or out” company policies, employees may move up the succession ladder so that excellent engineers with meager interpersonal skills are promoted into leadership positions in firms, leaving what they are really good at for what they may rarely excel in – people work. Good accountants, high in mathematical intelligence, may be promoted to managing dozens or hundreds of people, a challenge that could be well beyond their potential for excellence.
Although conversational intelligence is crucial for many careers (law, sales, and teaching come to mind), it may be of only minimal importance for others. What is important is a new way of thinking about selecting and promoting people in terms of the intelligences that are needed for particular jobs and roles, and what mix of intelligences would be best to optimize a project.
We tend to judge other people in terms of what we ourselves are good at. For a long time, I judged others based upon their verbal and interpersonal skills. However, I eventually came around to the idea that a person who is interpersonally awkward and even speechless may be quite a genius where I never was – on the playing field, in the orchestra pit, at the easel, or in the research laboratory.
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