An Investigation into Effects of Studying Language on Temporal Intelligence: Comparing Students of English, Persian and Arabic Languages

The concept of “intelligence” lost its one-dimensional sense many years ago and is now considered a multidimensional concept that encompasses all abilities of individuals. One type of intelligence that is based on time-related individual differences is “temporal intelligence”, which refers to the thoughts, views, and behaviors of people in relation to time. Although this variable has been researched in the field of managerial science, it has not received much attention in the field of education. Since the concept of time is closely related to culture and language, the present study attempted to compare the effects of studying three different languages on students’ temporal intelligence. Two objectives were considered in this study: first, to investigate the effects of studying English, Persian and Arabic languages on students’ temporal intelligence by considering the Applied ELT approach, activity theory, and habitual theory; and second, to investigate the possibility of significant differences among undergraduate students in English, Persian and Arabic in terms of temporal intelligence. For this purpose, the General Temporal Intelligence Scale was completed by 100 students of English language and literature, 100 students of Persian language and literature, and 90 students of Arabic language and literature. The results of the independent samples t-test on the data showed a significantly-negative effect of studying Persian and English on the temporal intelligence of students in these fields (p < 0.05), meaning that the temporal intelligence of second-semester students was higher than the temporal intelligence of eighth-semester students. Regarding the second purpose of the study, the findings indicated that there was a significant difference among these three groups in terms of temporal intelligence; in other words, English students had higher temporal intelligence (p < 0.05). Finally, the results and implications of this study were discussed in the context of language education.