I want my children to understand the world, but not just because the world is fascinating and the human mind is curious. I want them to understand it so that they will be positioned to make it a better place

Gardner studied for an Bachelor of Arts degree in social relations at Harvard (1965) with thesis titled The retirement community in America and read philosophy and sociology at the London School of Economics from 1965 to 1966. The focus of his work for the past fifteen years has been in the Good Work Project. He is also currently a board member at Amherst College and the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA).

Gardner is still considering a ninth existential intelligence (the posing and pondering of "big questions") but has not yet added it. Since 1999 Gardner has identified eight intelligences: linguistic logic-mathematical musical spatial bodily/kinesthetic interpersonal intrapersonal and naturalistic. He is best known for his theory of multiple intelligences as outlined in his book Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences (1983).