Development of a self-report inventory for assessing individual differences in learning processes

Abstract

Five studies are presented-all related to the development and application of a self-report inventory for measuring individual differences in learning processes. Factor analysis of items derived by translating laboratory learning processes into the context of academic study yielded four scales: Synthesis-Analysis, Study Methods, Fact Retention, and Elaborative Processing. There were no sex differences, and the scales demonstrated acceptable reliabilities. The Synthesis-Analysis and Elaborative Processing scales both assess aspects of information processing (including depth of processing), but Synthesis-Analysis assesses organizational processes, while Elaborative Processing deals with active, elaborative approaches to encoding. These two scales were positively related to performance under incidental learning instructions in both a lecture-learning and traditional verbal-learning study. Study Methods assessed adherence to systematic, traditional study techniques. This scale was positively related to performance in the intentional condition of the verbal learning study. The Fact Retention scale assessed the propensity to retain detailed, factual information. It was positively related to performance in the incidental condition of the verbal-learning but not the lecture-learning study. Future research and applications are discussed.