The learning styles of Australian exercise science and clinical exercise physiology students

Figures & data

Table 1. The characteristics of the four learning styles.

Learning Style	Characteristics
Diverger	Best at viewing concrete situations from many different points of view. Performs better in situations that call for generation of ideas, such as brainstorming sessions. Have broad cultural interests and like to gather information. Interested in people, tend to be imaginative and emotional, and have broad cultural interests. Prefer to work in groups, listening with an open mind to different points of view and receiving personalized feedback.
Assimilator	Best at understanding a wide range of information and putting it into concise, logical form. Less focused on people and more interested in ideas and abstract concepts. Find it more important that a theory have logical soundness than practical value. Is important for effectiveness in information and science careers. Prefer readings, lectures, exploring analytical models, and having time to think things through.
Converger	Best at finding practical uses for ideas and theories. Can solve problems and make decisions based on finding solutions to questions or problems. Prefer to deal with technical tasks and problems rather than with social issues and interpersonal issues. These learning skills are important for effectiveness in specialist and technology careers. Prefer to experiment with new ideas, simulations, laboratory assignments, and practical applications.
Accommodator	Learn from primarily ‘hands-on’ experience. Enjoy carrying out plans and involving themselves in new and challenging experiences. Tendency may be to act on ‘gut’ feelings rather than on logical analysis. In solving problems, rely more heavily on people for information than on their own technical analysis. Important for effectiveness in action-oriented careers such as marketing or sales. Prefer to work with others to get assignments done, to set goals, to do field work, and to test out different approaches to completing a project.

Figure 1. Kolb Learning Style Inventory Grid (adapted from A. Y. Kolb 2005).

Table 2. Kolb learning style inventory scores presented as mean (standard deviation).

	CE	RO	AC	AE	AC-CE	AE-RO	Acc	Div	Con	Ass
Total	24.3 (5.7)	29.1 (6.2)	29.1 (7.4)	37.5 (6.3)	4.8 (11.5)	8.4 (10.7)	30 (43%)	14 (20%)	11 (16%)	14 (20%)
Female (n = 39)	24.8 (6.3)	30.9 (5.7)	27.9 (7.6)	36.4 (6.4)	3.1 (12.4)	5.5 (10.4)	16 (41%)	11 (28%)	2 (5%)	10 (26%)
Male (n = 22)	24.6 (4.8)	25.2 (5.4)	30.0 (7.7)	40.2 (5.6)	5.4 (10.6)	15.0 (8.4)	12 (55%)	2 (9%)	7 (32%)	1 (4%)
P=	0.883	<0.001*	0.305	0.024*	0.460	<0.001*	0.309	0.080	0.005*	0.040*
CEP (n =12)	23.2 (7.2)	32.8 (7.1)	28.8 (4.8)	35.5 (6.0)	5.6 (10.5)	2.7 (11.8)	2 (17%)	5 (42%)	1 (8%)	4 (33%)
ES (n = 57)	24.6 (5.4)	28.3 (5.8)	29.3 (7.8)	38.0 (6.3)	4.6 (11.8)	9.7 (10.2)	28 (49%)	9 (15%)	10 (18%)	10 (18%)
P=	0.433	0.020*	0.857	0.219	0.785	0.039*	0.039*	0.043*	0.428	0.216

*CE = concrete experience, AC = abstract conceptualisation, RO = reflective observation, AE = active experimentation, Ass = Assimilator, Acc = Accommodator, Con = Converger, Div = Diverger.

Figure 2. Kolb learning style grid results of exercise science (ES) and clinical exercise physiology (CEP) students.

Kolb, A. Y 2005. “The Kolb Learning Style Inventory-Version 3.1 2005 Technical Specifications.” Boston, MA 200 (72): 166–171

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