Understanding the preferred
learning styles of team members
As a team leader, it is useful to understand the preferred learning styles of each team member so that you can
support them to develop their performance. This understanding will assist you in discussing the professional
development and support options that will best suit a team member’s needs and how they prefer to learn.
These learning styles are only a guide. A team member will have a mixture of these styles and their preferred style
will change depending on the type of activity being undertaken. The labels are not as important as being able to
recognise the characteristics of each style and modify professional development and support options accordingly.
A brief outline of each style is given overleaf, including how team members with this preferred style learn best and
how learning can be hindered.
Learning Style Descriptors (Honey and Munford, 1999)
Reflector - Reviewers
Reflectors prefer to view things from different
perspectives with an opportunity to plan ahead, attend
to detail and look for the meaning of things.
Activist – Doers
Activists enjoy new and challenging activities, and
benefit most from learning through experience and
working with others.
Theorist - Conclude
Theorists benefit most from learning through models,
theories or concepts, and analysing ideas logically
within structured environments.
Pragmatist – Planners
Pragmatists learn most easily through immediate
practical application of activities with an obvious link
between subject matter and “real life” applications.
The four learning styles are linked with the steps we go through as we learn.
Having an
experience
Activist
Renewing the
experience
Reflector
Planning the next
steps
Pragmatist
Concluding from
experience
Theorist
Reference
Swailes, S. and Senior, B. (2002) The Dimensionality of Honey and Mumford’s Learning Styles Questionnaire International Journal of
Selection and Assessment. Volume 7, Issue 1, pages 1–11, March 1999
Activists
Activists involve themselves fully and without bias in new experiences. They enjoy the here-and-now and are
happy to be dominated by immediate experiences. They are open-minded and this tends to make them
enthusiastic about anything new. Their philosophy is “I’ll try anything once.” Their days are filled with activity and
they revel in short-term crisis. They tend to thrive on the challenge of a new experience but get bored with
implementation and longer-term consolidation. They are gregarious and like to be the centre of attention.
Learn best when:
•
There is a wide range of new experiences, problems and
opportunities to tackle.
•
They are thrown in the deep end with a task they think is
difficult.
•
They are given free range to generate ideas.
•
They have the opportunity to lead or organise themselves.
Learn less when:
•
They have to listen to lectures or long explanations.
•
They have to work on their own a lot.
•
They are not able to get involved at the beginning of a
project.
• They have to follow instructions to the letter.
Reflectors
Reflectors like to stand back and ponder experiences and observe them from many different perspectives. They
collect data and like to analyse it before coming to a conclusion. They are thoughtful and tend to postpone reaching
a definitive conclusion. They take a back seat at meetings and in discussions. They enjoy observing other people in
action while taking a low profile stance themselves.
Learn best when:
•
They can do things in their own time, without tight
deadlines.
•
They are allowed to think before acting or commenting,
they need time to prepare.
•
They have an opportunity to review what has happened
and what they have learned.
•
They are able to painstaking research.
Learn less when:
•
They are worried by pressure or rushed
•
They are forced into the limelight or leadership roles
•
They don’t have time to prepare.
Theorists
Theorists adapt and integrate observations into complex but logical theories. They think through problems in a
step-by-step manner. They assimilate disparate facts into coherent theories. They tend to be perfectionists and
they like to rationalise and theorise. They favour logic and rationality. They can be detached and analytical and
dedicated to rational objectivity. Their approach to problems is consistently logical. They feel uncomfortable with
subjectivity and lateral thinking.
Learn best when:
•
There is clear structure and purpose
•
They have time to think logically about
ideas/event/situations
•
They are intellectually stretched
• They can see a logical progression in what they are
doing.
Learn less when:
•
They are pushed into doing things without knowing the
context or purpose
•
They feel intellectually out of step with others
•
The activity is unstructured or disorganised
•
They are not given a chance to use their reasoning skills.
Pragmatists
Pragmatists are keen to try out new ideas, theories and techniques to see if they work in practice. They search out
new ideas and experiment with them. They return from professional development sessions with new ideas which
they immediately will try out. They get on with the job and act quickly. They get impatient with ruminating and openended discussions. They are practical and respond to problems as a challenge. Their philosophy is “There is
always a better way”.
Learn best when:

They see the new learning is practical

They have the opportunity to put into practice what they
are learning.
 They are given a chance to try things out for themselves
and are given feedback.
Learn less when:

They cannot see any benefit in what they are learning

There is no apparent pay-off

They are not given a chance to try-out new ideas
 There are obstacles to implementing what they are
learning.
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