Learning is a Process: Toward an Improved Definition of Learning

Abstract

A more objective and accurate definition of learning than that commonly found in psychology textbooks is proposed. The more common definition is similar to the following: Learning is a relatively permanent change in behavior brought about by practice or experience. However, (a) learning as a process should be identified and distinguished from the behavioral results or the products of that process; (b) learning does not necessarily produce a change in behavior—the behavior may remain relatively unchanged while there is a change in the effectiveness of the stimuli eliciting it; (c) ambiguous words, such as practice and experience, are replaced by words that more clearly represent what happens during learning. The following is suggested as an improved definition: Learning is the process by which a relatively stable modification in stimulus–response relations is developed as a consequence of functional environmental interaction via the senses.