Social Learning Theory

"Learning would be exceedingly laborious, not to mention hazardous, if people had to rely solely on the effects of their own actions to inform them what to do. Fortunately, most human behavior is learned observationally through modeling: from observing others one forms an idea of how new behaviors are performed, and on later occasions this coded information serves as a guide for action."
-Albert Bandura, Social Learning Theory, 1977

What is Social Learning Theory?

The social learning theory proposed by Albert Bandura has become perhaps the most influential theory of learning and development. While rooted in many of the basic concepts of traditional learning theory, Bandura believed that direct reinforcement could not account for all types of learning.

His theory added a social element, arguing that people can learn new information and behaviors by watching other people. Known as observational learning (or modeling), this type of learning can be used to explain a wide variety of behaviors.

Basic Social Learning Concepts

There are three core concepts at the heart of social learning theory. First is the idea that people can learn through observation. Next is the idea that internal mental states are an essential part of this process. Finally, this theory recognizes that just because something has been learned, it does not mean that it will result in a change in behavior.

Let's explore each of these concepts in greater depth.

1. People can learn through observation.

Observational Learning

In his famous Bobo doll experiment, Bandura demonstrated that children learn and imitate behaviors they have observed in other people. The children in Bandura’s studies observed an adult acting violently toward a Bobo doll. When the children were later allowed to play in a room with the Bobo doll, they began to imitate the aggressive actions they had previously observed.

Bandura identified three basic models of observational learning:

1. A live model, which involves an actual individual demonstrating or acting out a behavior.
2. A verbal instructional model, which involves descriptions and explanations of a behavior.
3. A symbolic model, which involves real or fictional characters displaying behaviors in books, films, television programs, or online media.

2. Mental states are important to learning.

Intrinsic Reinforcement

Bandura noted that external, environmental reinforcement was not the only factor to influence learning and behavior. He described intrinsic reinforcement as a form of internal reward, such as pride, satisfaction, and a sense of accomplishment. This emphasis on internal thoughts and cognitions helps connect learning theories to cognitive developmental theories. While many textbooks place social learning theory with behavioral theories, Bandura himself describes his approach as a 'social cognitive theory.'

3. Learning does not necessarily lead to a change in behavior.

While behaviorists believed that learning led to a permanent change in behavior, observational learning demonstrates that people can learn new information without demonstrating new behaviors.

The Modeling Process

Not all observed behaviors are effectively learned. Factors involving both the model and the learner can play a role in whether social learning is successful. Certain requirements and steps must also be followed. The following steps are involved in the observational learning and modeling process:

• Attention:
  In order to learn, you need to be paying attention. Anything that detracts your attention is going to have a negative effect on observational learning. If the model interesting or there is a novel aspect to the situation, you are far more likely to dedicate your full attention to learning.


• Retention:
  The ability to store information is also an important part of the learning process. Retention can be affected by a number of factors, but the ability to pull up information later and act on it is vital to observational learning.


• Reproduction:
  Once you have paid attention to the model and retained the information, it is time to actually perform the behavior you observed. Further practice of the learned behavior leads to improvement and skill advancement.


• Motivation:
  Finally, in order for observational learning to be successful, you have to be motivated to imitate the behavior that has been modeled. Reinforcement and punishment play an important role in motivation. While experiencing these motivators can be highly effective, so can observing other experience some type of reinforcement or punishment. For example, if you see another student rewarded with extra credit for being to class on time, you might start to show up a few minutes early each day.

Final Thoughts

In addition to influencing other psychologists, Bandura's social learning theory has had important implication in the field of eduction. Today, both teachers and parents recognize the importance of modeling appropriate behaviors. Other classroom strategies such as encouraging children and building self-efficacy are also rooted in social learning theory.

Kolb's Learning Styles

Kolb's model of learning styles is one of the best-known and widely used learning style theories. Psychologist David Kolb first outlined his theory of learning styles in 1984. He believed that our individual learning styles emerge due to our genetics, life experiences, and the demands of our current environment. In addition to describing four different learning styles, Kolb also developed a theory of experiential learning and a learning style inventory.

In his experiential theory, learning is viewed as a four-stage cycle. First, immediate and concrete experiences serve as a basis for observation. Next, the individual reflects on these observations and begins to build a general theory of what this information might mean. In the next step, the learner forms abstract concepts and generalizations based upon their hypothesis. Finally, the learner tests the implications of these concepts in new situations. After this step, the process once again cycles back to the first stage of the experiential process.

The learning styles described by Kolb are based upon two major dimensions: active/reflective and abstract/concrete.

The four learning styles that Kolb identified are:

• The Converger
  People with this learning style have dominant abilities in the areas of Abstract Conceptualization and Active Experimentation. They are highly skilled in the practical application of ideas. They tend to do best in situations where there is a single best solution or answer to a problem.


• The Diverger
  Divergers dominant abilities lie in the areas of Concrete Experience and Reflective Observation, essentially the opposite strengths of the Converger. People with this learning style are good at looking at the "big picture" and organizing smaller bits of information into a meaningful whole. Divergers tend to be emotional and creative and enjoy brainstorming to come up with new ideas. Artists, musicians, counselors, and people with a strong interest in the fine arts, humanities, and liberal arts tend to have this learning style.


• The Assimilator
  Assimilators are skilled in the areas of Abstract Conceptualization and Reflective Observation. Understanding and creating theoretical models is one of their greatest strengths. They tend to be more interested in abstract ideas rather than in people, but they are not greatly concerned with the practical applications of theories. Individuals who work in math and the basic sciences tend to have this type of learning style. Assimilators also enjoy work that involves planning and research.


• The Accommodator
  People with this learning style are strongest in Concrete Experience and Active Experimentation. This style is basically the opposite of the Assimilator style. Accommodators are doers; they enjoy performing experiments and carrying out plans in the real world. Out of all four learning styles, Accommodators tend to be the greatest risk-takers. They are good at thinking on their feet and changing their plans spontaneously in response to new information. When solving problems, they typically use a trial-and-error approach. People with this learning style often work in technical fields or in action-oriented jobs such as sales and marketing.

Similarity to Jungian Personality Theory

Kolb has suggested that his theory expands and builds upon Carl Jung's theory of personality, which is focused on how individuals prefer to interact and adapt to the world. Kolb's learning dimensions share a great deal in common with the dimensions found on the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). The Jungian learning styles are also based upon the types identified on the MBTI.

The MBTI is a personality inventory based on Jung's work that looks at personality across four major dimensions. The Extraversion/Introversion dimension on the MBTI is very similar to Kolb's Active/Reflective dimension. People high on extraversion and active experimentation tend to be doers, while those high on introversion and reflective observation tend to be watchers. The Feeling/Thinking dimension on the MBTI is also very similar to Kolb's Concrete/Abstract dimension. Those high in the feeling and concrete experience areas tend to be more focused on the here-and-now, while those high in the areas of thinking and abstract conceptualization prefer to focus on theoretical concepts.

Support and Criticism for Kolb's Learning Styles

In one survey of students, Kolb and Goldman found that there was a correlation between student learning styles and their chosen departmental major. Students who planned to graduate in their selected major had learning styles that were strongly related to their areas of interest. For example, students entering management fields had a more accommodative style, while those pursuing mathematics degrees had a more assimilative approach. The results also indicated that students who were pursuing a degree aligned with their learning style had a greater commitment to their field than did students who were pursuing degrees not related to their learning preferences.

The concept of learning styles has been criticized by many and experts suggest that there is little evidence to support the existence of learning styles at all. One large scale study looked at more than 70 different learning style theories and concluded that each lacked enough valid research to support its claims. In a 2008 article, educator Mark K. Smith argued that Kolb's model is supported only by weak empirical evidence and that the learning process is actually far more complex than the theory suggests. He also noted that the theory fails to fully acknowledge how different experiences and cultures may impact the learning process.

References:

Coffield, F., Moseley, D., Hall, E., Ecclestone, K. (2004). Learning styles and pedagogy in post-16 learning: A systematic and critical review. London: Learning and Skills Research Centre.

Kolb, D. A. & Goldman, M. B. (1973). Toward a typology of learning styles and learning environments: An investigation of the impact of learning styles and discipline demands on the academic performance, social adaptation and career choices of MIT seniors. Cambridge, Mass.: Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Retrieved from http://archive.org/stream/towardtypologyof00kolb#page/n3/mode/2up

Kolb, D A. (1981). Learning styles and disciplinary differences. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, Inc.

Kolb, D.A. (1984). Experiential Learning: Experience as the source of learning and development. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall

Smith, M. K. (2001). David A. Kolb on experiential learning. Retrieved from http://www.infed.org/biblio/b-explrn.htm

VARK Learning Styles

Do students learn best when teaching methods match their learning style? Will they do better in school when activities are aligned to their learning strengths and preferences? Learning styles are a popular concept in psychology and education that are intended to identify how people learn best. The popularity of this concept grew dramatically during the 1970s and 1980s, despite the evidence suggesting that personal learning preferences have no actual influence on learning results.

While the existing research has found that matching teaching methods to learning styles had no influence on educational outcomes, the concept of learning styles remains extremely popular. There are many different ways of categorizing learning styles including Kolb's model and the Jungian learning styles. Neil Fleming's VARK model is one of the most popular representations. In 1987, Fleming developed an inventory designed to help students and others learn more about their individual learning preferences.

In Fleming's model, sometimes referred to VARK learning styles, learners are identified by whether they have a preference for visual learning (pictures, movies, diagrams), auditory learning (music, discussion, lectures), reading and writing (making lists, reading textbooks, taking notes), or kinesthetic learning (movement, experiments, hands-on activities).

Visual Learners

Visual learners learn best by seeing. Graphic displays such as charts, diagrams, illustrations, handouts, and videos are all helpful learning tools for visual learners. People who prefer this type of learning would rather see information presented in a visual rather than in written form.

If you think you might be a visual learner, answer the following questions:

Do you have to see information in order to remember it?
Do you pay close attention to body language?
Is art, beauty, and aesthetics important to you?
Does visualizing information in your mind help you remember it better?
If you can answer yes to most of these questions, chances are good that you have a visual learning style.

Aural Learners

Aural (or auditory) learners learn best by hearing information. They tend to get a great deal out of lectures and are good at remembering things they are told.

Are you an auditory learner? Consider the following questions:

Do you prefer to listen to class lectures rather than reading from the textbook?
Does reading out loud help you remember information better?
Would you prefer to listen to a recording of your class lectures or a podcast rather than going over your class notes?
Do you create songs to help remember information?
If you answered yes to most of these questions, then you are probably an auditory learner.

Reading and Writing Learners

Reading and writing learners prefer to take in information displayed as words. Learning materials that are primarily text-based are strongly preferred by these learners.

Could you be a reading and writing learner? Read through the following questions and think about whether they might apply to you.

Do you find reading your textbook to be a great way to learn new information?
Do you take a lot of notes during class and while reading your books?
Do you enjoy making lists, reading definitions, and creating PowerPoint presentations?
Do you prefer it when teachers make use of overheads and handouts?
If you answered yes to these questions, it is likely that you have a strong preference for the reading and writing style of learning.

Kinesthetic Learners

Kinesthetic (or tactile) learners learn best by touching and doing. Hands-on experience is important to kinesthetic learners.

Not sure if you're a kinesthetic learner? Answer these questions to find out:

Do you enjoy performing tasks that involve directly manipulating objects and materials?
Is it difficult for you to sit still for long periods of time?
Are you good at applied activities such as painting, cooking, mechanics, sports, and woodworking.
Do you have to actually practice doing something in order to learn it?
If you responded yes to these questions, then you are most likely a kinesthetic learner.

Is It Helpful to Know Your Learning Style?

The validity of the VARK model as well as other learning style theories has been questioned and criticized extensively. One large scale look at learning style models suggested that the instruments designed to assess individual learning styles were questionable, while other critics have suggested that labeling students as having one specific learning style can actually be a hindrance to learning.

Despite the criticism and lack of empirical support, the VARK model remains fairly popular among both students and educators. Many students immediately recognize that they are drawn to a particular learning style. Others may find that their learning preferences lie somewhere in the middle. For example, a student might feel that both visual and auditory learning is the most appealing.

While aligning teaching strategies to learning styles may or may not be effective, students might find that understanding their own learning preferences can be helpful. For example, if you know that visual learning appeals to you most, using visual study strategies in conjunction with other learning methods might help you better remember the information you are studying.

So what happens if no single learning preference calls out to you? What if you change preferences based on the situation or the type of information you are learning? In such instances, you probably have what is known as a multimodal style. For example, you might rely on your reading and writing preferences when you are dealing with a class that requires a great deal of book reading and note-taking, such as a history of psychology course. During an art class, you might depend more on your visual and kinesthetic preferences as you take in pictorial information and learn new techniques.

3 Reasons to Try New Learning Styles

When you know your preferred learning styles, you can capitalize the time you have available for learning and make it as efficient and enjoyable as possible.
"You can organize materials and structure situations to fit your best way of learning, fine-tune your timing to capture your hours of maximum receptivity, and choose learning experiences that match your tastes," writes Ron Gross in Peak Learning.

But flexing your learning muscles by trying new styles is important, too. Presented here with Ron's permission are three reasons to get outside your learning style comfort zone.

1. Some Subjects Strongly Demand a Certain Style
There are three advantages to experimenting with flexing your style. First, some subjects and situations strongly demand one or another style. When that happens. you are at a disadvantage if you can't switch into that mode and operate, if not at your maximum, at least effectively.
One example is academic courses, which generally require you to take a stringer approach.

Don't know if you're a grouper or a stringer? Take this learning style inventory: Are You a Grouper or a Stringer?

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2. An Alternative Approach May Surprise You
Second, you may discover that an alternative approach actually works surprisingly well. Perhaps you have never really given it a try only because some early experiences convinced you that you weren't successful with that approach.
All of us have neglected capacities of this kind. Finding yours can be a revelation and add a strong note to your intellectual repertoire. Thousands of people who "knew" they couldn't possibly draw or write — two powerful and gratifying ways of learning — have discovered that they can. Read Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain by Betty Edwards, and Writing the Natural Way by Gabriele Rico.


3. Your Ability to Communicate Will Improve
And third, practice with different learning styles will greatly improve your capacity to communicate with other people who operate in those styles.
Beyond applying it to your own learning needs, you may find your new awareness of learning styles especially useful with children, if you are a parent or a teacher, and in your career. In both of these areas, chronic problems can be solved through this approach.

Learning to Learn - A New Learning Style

If you haven't yet heard about Learning to Learn, you have now. It's an impressive learning system that "moves students from rote-memory to inquiry-based learning," developed by Marcia Heiman and Joshua Slomianko.
The book's subtitle is "Thinking Skills for the 21st Century." Heiman and Slomianko developed a course based on research from the U.S. Department of Labor and the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD) that showed the most important of all skills needed in a global economy is the ability to learn. Knowing how to learn enables a person to become competent in all other basic workplace skills.

Heiman and Slomianko worked closely with ASTD to create a version of LTL for corporate America, and the program now is being taught to students of all ages, including those already in the workplace. Students across the United States are learning how to learn, and they're not only having fantastic success in school, they have an edge in the workplace from the very start.

Students left behind to fail, dropouts struggling to earn a GED, adults who have never felt successful, all are finding they can learn. Teachers at all levels find students respond immediately to Learning to Learn (LTL). Here's one testimonial from LearningtoLearn.com:

"I've been using Learning to Learn for the last three months, and the difference in my students is amazing. First, they're learning so much more, and doing so much better in class. Before I started using LTL, if I were to legitimately grade my students, most of them would fail. Now they're able to answer complex questions on tests. I had to raise my standards, or they'd all get A's. With LTL, my students are active and involved, and they really get interested in what they're learning. It almost seems hard to remember now, but just three months ago, they were nodding off in class. I've been teaching for 29 years, and I've never seen anything like this. I leave school smiling at the end of the day. I'm having a wonderful time." — Robert Healey, Science Teacher, Boston, MA

You'll find more testimonials from both students and teachers on the LTL website. They're pretty surprising.

LTL is based on two major skills:

Generating questions from lecture notes and books;
Constructing visual organizers that answer a student's questions.
and four major thinking skills:
Ask questions of new material presented in lectures or books—thinking about which questions the material answers, and which it does not;
Break up large tasks and complex ideas into smaller parts;
Are goal-directed; direct their study to meet their instructor's objectives;
Take feedback, testing themselves informally to see how much they're learning.
Heiman says these are natural learning skills. They're skills we use every day without even thinking about it. When you drive a car, you are constantly assessing the situation surrounding you, asking yourself questions, making decisions about what you will do next. LTL teaches students to use these same skills in the classroom.

LTL in the Classroom

In the classroom, LTL involves concrete skills based on the four major thinking skills. Students learn to:
Question what they read in books or hear in lectures and make guesses about what it means, what comes next, how it might be tested. "You'll become a more active learner," Heiman writes, "bring to the table what you've learned elsewhere—not just waiting for a table of answers. And you'll predict your exam questions."

Break up material into smaller parts, allowing them to manage time better and keep from feeling overwhelmed by complex subjects. From Heiman: "Being goal-directed—directing your studying to meet your (and your instructors') objectives—will help you find important facts and ideas in your class notes and textbooks. Combined with the questioning methods, working through small learning tasks will help you test yourself—so that you can assess your learning progress before your instructors do."

Heiman encourages students by assuring them that although LTL seems like a collection of separate skills, once the skills are learned and applied in different combinations of methods, adapted to each students' needs, they will begin to see LTL as a "system of writing questions, breaking up complex tasks and ideas into smaller parts, setting learning goals, looking for feedback on your completion of these goals—and evaluating the process you went through."

In the next few weeks, we'll be writing more about LTL, and we're excited about bringing you an interview with Marcia Heiman. So stay tuned!

Learning Styles Inventory - Your Personal Intelligences

You have not one, but at least seven intelligences, and you can use most of them to enhance your learning. So says Ron Gross, a favorite contributing writer here at About Continuing Education. He's given permission to reprint this intelligence inventory from his book, Peak Learning: How to Create Your Own Lifelong Education Program for Personal Enlightenment and Professional Success:
Most people still believe that their capacity to learn is determined by intelligence. We all recall having our IQ taken at some point in our childhood, and most of us know the results. The IQ test was supposed to measure your capacity to learn, and therefore to predict your success in school. However, contemporary psychologists have debunked the whole idea of a single capacity called intelligence. Here you'll learn about seven intelligences we all have.

Each intelligence in this sense is a particular kind of learning talent that seems to come easily. One person may excel at the eye-hand coordination of sports, playing a musical instrument, or solving math problems; another might find it easy to empathize with other's needs, build a birdhouse, or learn a language. The precise combination of skills can arise from a combination of talent and environmental factors.

The best guide to your multiple intelligences is Frames of Mind by Harvard psychologist Howard Gardner. Gardner's seven intelligences are:

Linguistic
Logical-mathematical
Spatial
Musical
Bodily-kinesthetic
Intrapersonal (knowing yourself)
Interpersonal (knowing other people)
Most of us have a pretty good idea of which of these intelligences we've cultivated the most and in which we feel strong. As a reminder, however, here's a simple exercise that will pinpoint some of your strengths.

Which Are Your Strong Intelligences?

Circle the numbers of those descriptions that you feel apply to you:
You easily remember nice turns of phrase or memorable quotes and use them deftly in conversation.
You sense quickly when someone you are with is troubled about something.
You are fascinated by scientific and philosophical questions like "When did time begin?"
You can find your way around a new area or neighborhood very quickly.
You are regarded as quite graceful and rarely feel awkward in your movements.
You can sing on key.
You regularly read the science pages of your newspaper and look at magazines on science or technology.
You note other people's errors in using words or grammar, even if you don't correct them.
You often can figure out how something works or how to fix something that's broken, without asking for help.
You can readily imagine how other people play the roles they do in their work or families and imaginatively see yourself in their roles.
You can remember in detail the layout and landmarks of places you've visited on vacations.
You enjoy music and have favorite performers.
You like to draw.
You dance well.
You organize things in your kitchen, bathroom, and at your desk according to categories and in patterns.
You feel confident in interpreting what other people do in terms of what they are feeling.
You like to tell stories and are considered a good storyteller.
You sometimes enjoy different sounds in your environment.
When you meet new people, you often make connections between their characteristics and those of others acquaintances.
You feel you have a keen sense of what you can and can't do.
If all three of any of the following trios applies to you, you probably are strong in that intelligence, even if you haven't cultivated it.

Questions 1, 8, and 17: linguistic intelligence
Questions 6, 12, and 18: musical intelligence
Questions 3, 7, and 15: logical-mathematical intelligence
Questions 4, 11, and 13: spatial intelligence
Questions 5, 9, and 14: bodily-kinesthetic intelligence
Questions 10, 16, and 20: intrapersonal intelligence (knowing yourself)
Questions 2, 10, and 19: interpersonal intelligence (knowing others)

Using Your Intelligences

Whatever your strongest intelligences might be, by selecting among various methods you can assemble a repertoire of ways to learn that capitalize on them. By focusing your learning through your best areas you can make it easier, more rewarding, and more fun. You can build up skills without expecting too much from yourself by challenging yourself to learn something in an unfamiliar way, and by combining skills from as many intelligences as possible, you can learn in a way that is more complete and involving.
Suppose you have a strong spatial intelligence and you're setting out on a study of philosophy. How might you link your learning with your predilection for visual forms, shapes, and patterns?

First, you might seek out the facts of the philosophers by obtaining photos of them and their habitats. Find films and videos, such as Edward de Bono's series Great Thinkers, that feature mock interviews with historical philosophers, or contemporary videos of interviews with noted scholars.

You might also try to make diagrams about what you're learning, using varied colors for the aspects of each master's thoughts. The metaphor of vision as a symbol for insight and understanding will be of particular interest as you read, and you will come across some books that present philosophical ideas visually, such as Maps of the Mind, by Charles Hampden-Turner. You will certainly want to create some fresh visual images of your own that portray the philosophers, problems, principles, or systems you are studying. A diagram comparing Plato to Aristotle, for instance, would be wonderfully illuminating.

Are You a Grouper or a Stringer?

When learning something new, do you look for overall concepts and big ideas first? If you were learning a new style of cooking, for example, would you visit restaurants, talk to cooks, taste lots of new dishes, and then start experimenting?
Or do you prefer to start at the beginning and learn in a systematic way, taking courses in a logical sequence, according to a very specific plan?

Understanding how you learn best helps you choose the right learning methods and takes the frustration out of studying. From Peak Learning: How to Create Your Own Lifelong Education Program for Personal Enlightenment and Professional Success by Ron Gross, a favorite About Continuing Education contributor, we bring you an exercise developed by David Lewis and James Greene of the Mind Potential Study Group in London, printed with permission.

Are You a Grouper or a Stringer?

Check the phrase in each pair that corresponds more closely to your preferred approach to learning. There are no right or wrong ways to complete the statements; they're designed simply to distinguish your preferences.

When studying one unfamiliar subject, you:
a. prefer to gather information from diverse topic areas.
b. prefer to focus on one topic.
You would rather:
a. know a little about a great many subjects
b. become an expert on just one subject
When studying from a textbook, you:
a. skip ahead and read chapters of special interest out of sequence
b. work systematically from one chapter to the next, not moving on until you have understood earlier material
When asking people for information about some subject of interest, you:
a. tend to ask broad questions that call for rather general answers
b. tend to ask narrow questions that demand specific answers
When browsing in a library or bookstore, you:
a. roam around looking at books on many different subjects
b. stay more or less in one place, looking at books on just a couple of subjects
You are best at remembering:
a. general principles
b. specific facts
When performing some tasks, you:
a. like to have background information not strictly related to the work
b. prefer to concentrate only on strictly relevant information
You think that educators should:
a. give students exposure to a wide range of subjects in college
b. ensure that students mainly acquire in-depth knowledge related to their specialties
When on vacation, you would rather:
a. spend a short amount of time in several places
b. stay in one place the whole time and get to know it well
When learning something, you would rather:
a. follow general guidelines
b. work with a detailed plan of action

Do you agree that, in addition to specialized knowledge, a person should know some math, art, physics, literature, psychology, politics, languages, biology, history, and medicine? If you think people should study four or more of these subjects, score an "a" on this question.

Now total all of your a and b answers.

If you scored six or more a's on the test, you are a grouper. If you scored six or more b's, you're a stringer. If your a's and b's were close to equal, you find both approaches congenial and can choose the one that best fits the subject at hand.

The higher your total of either a's or b's, the more specialized your learning style is.