Discover Education (Jul 2025)

Profiling students’ multiple intelligences approach in the learning of economics in a Ghanaian University

  • Ernest Opoku,
  • Dominic Owusu,
  • Francis Arthur,
  • Iddrisu Salifu,
  • Emmanuel Quayson,
  • Eric Boateng,
  • Francis Obeng Gyedu,
  • Stanley Asare-Bediako,
  • Emmanuel Rungson Attom,
  • Solomon Adjatey Tetteh,
  • Sharon Abam Nortey,
  • Ayishatu Ameen

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s44217-025-00571-x
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 4, no. 1
pp. 1 – 15

Abstract

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Abstract The evolving landscape of higher education requires a better understanding of students’ cognitive strengths, especially in complex disciplines such as Economics where multiple approaches to problem solving are essential. This study explored students’ multiple intelligences (MI) approach to learning Economics and examined gender differences in the MI profiles of Economics students in Ghana. A descriptive cross-sectional survey design was employed, collecting data from 327 Economics students at the University of Cape Coast through a simple random sampling technique. An adapted multiple intelligence scale was used as the data collection instrument. Descriptive statistics (mean and standard deviation) and one-way MANOVA were used to analyse the data. Results indicated that students frequently used Bodily-Kinesthetic intelligence (BKI), Naturalistic Intelligence (NI), Intrapersonal Intelligence (IRI), Interpersonal Intelligence (ITI), Musical Intelligence (MSI), and Logical-Mathematical Intelligence (LMI) in their learning processes, while spatial intelligence (SI) was used less frequently. Significant gender differences were observed in several MI dimensions, with female students demonstrating higher Linguistic Intelligence (LI), Logical-Mathematical Intelligence (LMI), Musical Intelligence (MSI), Interpersonal Intelligence (ITI) and Intrapersonal Intelligence (IRI) than males. No significant gender differences were found for SI, NI and BKI. These findings contribute to the understanding of MI profiles in Economics education and highlight the need for gender-sensitive, personalised teaching approaches that recognise students' diverse intelligence profiles. It is recommended that Economics educators and curriculum developers in higher education should incorporate insights from students' multiple intelligences to design more inclusive and effective teaching strategies that improve learning outcomes.

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