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COPYRIGHT 2003 College Reading and Learning Association
While there are an infinite number of individual differences among students in affective, cognitive, and psychomotor characteristics, the concern of learning style research is to identify student characteristics which are related to instructional methods and learning outcomes in educationally significant ways.
Allport (1937), a personality theorist, introduced the concept of style. He conceptualized style as one's characteristic manner of thinking, learning, and behavior. In a sense, he viewed style as representing one's lifestyle in approaching encountered tasks and situations. Later, Allport (1961) recognized that style would need to be analyzed into its various components in order to understand its complexity.
Styles lie at the crossroads of cognitive abilities and personality traits (Jonassen & Grabowski, 1993; Messick et al., 1976). Style represents an ability or trait that can be demonstrated to interact with a learning environment variable such as an instructional method or type of learning outcome measure in a facilitative or obstructive manner related to learning performance (Cronbach & Snow, 1977). Such a relationship between a student characteristic and learning environment variable often is referred to as an aptitude-treatment or trait-treatment interaction.
The measurement of cognitive abilities (intelligence and aptitudes) has long been used in schools and colleges. In general, cognitive ability is a good predictor of academic performance (Anastasi & Urbina, 1997). It typically does not interact with alternative instructional methods related to learning outcomes. Rather, cognitive ability is a strong indicator of level and amount of learning regardless of the instructional methods employed by a teacher.
Until recently, measurement of personality traits typically has not been a part of academic life, but rather has been a part of clinical and counseling practice (Messick, 1994). In contrast to cognitive ability, personality research has attempted to identify personal characteristics independent from abilities, but which have a pervasive effect on an individual's thinking, learning, and behavior. In a sense, personality traits often are viewed as adjunct and parallel factors to cognitive ability related to academic performance.
Recent progress in both personality trait and instructional method research suggests that it is important to study systematic interactions between learning style and instructional methods related to academic performances of students in schools and colleges. The delineation and demonstrated effectiveness of diverse instructional methods has gained research support in recent years (Eggen & Kauchak, 2001). Alternative instructional methods have been the missing link in learning style research. That is, to study an interaction between learning style and instructional method requires that instructional methods are well defined so that an appropriate approach can be matched to a student's learning style.
Recent studies by McCrae and Costa (1994) and McCrae et al., (1998) support the stability of five personality traits (extraversion, emotional stability, openness, agreeableness, and conscientiousness). These traits are similar to those painstakingly studied earlier by Jung (1921)....
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