Experiential Learning Theory and Learning Styles

The Cycle of Experiential Learning

In ELT, learning is defined as the process whereby knowledge is created through the transformation of experience. Knowledge results from the combination of grasping and transforming experience. The ELT model portrays two dialectically related modes of grasping experience—concrete experience (CE) and abstract conceptualization (AC)—and two dialectically related modes of transforming experience—reflective observation (RO) and active experimentation (AE). Experiential learning is a process of constructing knowledge that involves a creative tension among the four learning modes that is responsive to contextual demands. This process is portrayed as an idealized learning cycle or spiral where the learner “touches all the bases”— experiencing, reflecting, thinking, and acting—in a recursive process that is sensitive to the learning situation and what is being learned. Immediate or concrete experiences are the basis for observations and reflections. These reflections are assimilated and distilled into abstract concepts from which new implications for action can be drawn. These implications can be actively tested and serve as guides in creating new experiences.

Experiential Learning Styles

Kolb’s learning styles, describing how individuals learn from experience, are defined by an individual’s relative preference for the four modes of the learning cycle described in experiential learning theory— concrete experience, reflective observation, abstract conceptualization, and active experimentation. These learning styles can be assessed by the Kolb Learning Style Inventory (KLSI). Learning style describes the unique ways that individuals spiral through the learning cycle based on their preference for the four different learning modes—CE, RO, AC, and AE. Because of our genetic makeup, our particular life experiences, and the demands of our present environment, we develop a preferred way of choosing among these four learning modes. We resolve the conflict between being concrete or abstract and between being active or reflective in patterned, characteristic ways. ELT argues that learning style is not a psychological trait but a dynamic state. This dynamic state arises from an individual’s preferential resolution of the dual dialectics of experiencing–conceptualizing and acting– reflecting. Stable and enduring patterns of learning style arise from consistent patterns of transaction between the individual and his or her environment. The way we process the possibilities of each new emerging event determines the range of choices and decisions we see. The choices and decisions we make to some extent determine the events we live through, and these events influence our future choices. Thus, people create themselves through the choice of actual occasions they live through. ELT posits that learning is the major determinant of human development, and how individuals learn shapes the course of their personal development. Previous research has shown that learning styles are influenced by culture, personality type, educational specialization, career choice, and current job role and tasks.

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