The learning cycle of David Kolb
Four learning styles in the learning process
David Kolb is an American learning psychologist and educator. He is best known for Kolb’s learning cycle, in which he defines four learning styles: thinkers, dreamers, doers, and decision-makers. Everyone has one or more preferred styles, each with its own strengths and pitfalls.
Eva Declercq
DDavid Kolb is an American learning psychologist and educator. He is best known for Kolb’s learning cycle, in which he defines four learning styles: thinkers, dreamers, doers, and decision-makers. Everyone has one or more preferred styles, each with their own strengths and pitfalls.
Are you on your way to becoming a coach, or are you currently following a coach training programme? Then Kolb’s cycle is an important foundation for better understanding your own development.
Kolb strongly emphasises the importance of the cycle itself. He believes that, regardless of your preference, you need to develop all four learning styles to make the learning process more effective.
Kolb’s learning cycle
The four learning styles according to Kolb
- Doer
- Dreamer
- Thinker
- Decision-maker
Discover the power of the learning cycle in our professional coach training programme!
Kolb’s learning cycle
Kolb’s learning cycle defines four learning styles along two different axes. On the one hand, there is active versus reflective learning. On the other hand, there are concrete experiences versus abstract concepts.
An active learning style is more focused on practice and taking action yourself. These preferred styles learn most from their own experiences or through trial and error. They actively seek out new information. In contrast, reflective learning is more about observing and reflecting on experiences.
You then have profiles that lean toward concrete experiences, such as doers and dreamers. They need to be able to relate to specific scenarios that connect with their own reality. Abstract learning profiles, on the other hand, gain more from imagining and visualising possible scenarios. Thinkers tend to do this through theoretical frameworks and models, while decision-makers look for practical applications, such as step-by-step plans.
In reality, however, most people are a mix of different learning styles. David Kolb therefore emphasised the importance of practising all four learning styles. To fully understand something, you need to move through all four styles — hence the term Kolb’s learning cycle.
Anyone who wants to become a coach benefits from exploring their own preferred learning styles. By developing yourself across different ways of thinking and learning, you make the learning cycle more effective. This allows you to better connect theory and practice and further develop or refine the strengths and pitfalls of the different learning styles. You may discover connections that you would not see if you applied only one learning style.
Finally, other factors also come into play, such as your interest in a particular topic, your background, and your current situation.
The four learning styles of Kolb
Everyone learns in a different way. In fact, we all have our own individual way of learning. Some people are production-oriented and therefore learn best through practical experience. Others are meaning-oriented and look for depth and significance in what they learn. Motivations and drivers also differ from person to person.
According to David Kolb, every learning cycle starts with experience. Kolb’s learning styles can therefore be seen as four phases we move through while learning:
- Gaining experience – To understand something, we first need to experience it. That is why schools teach fractions using pieces of cake, or use characters like “John and Jane” as examples in class.
- Reflecting – Next, we observe a similar situation and reflect on it in relation to our own experience.
- Conceptualising – Then we give a definition to the abstract concept. For example, “fractions” in mathematics or “syllables” in language.
- Applying – Finally, you apply the learned concepts to your own reality.
Kolb linked these four phases to different learning styles and developed a test to identify your personal preferred style.
In our coach training programme, we use various methods to guide participants through the entire learning process. In this way, we connect with everyone’s preferred style while also expanding comfort zones. By thinking, feeling, and doing, you often create a stronger integration of the knowledge you want to share.
Learning style 1 – The Doer
Doers are practically oriented and learn most through active experience. This learning style is action-driven and eager to try new things in order to understand them. Doers adapt quickly to new contexts and learn best through on-the-job training or trial and error. This style is often the first step in Kolb’s learning cycle.
At times, doers can be overly focused on action, which may come across as impatience. Their drive is contagious, but works best when paired with a clear direction.
Learning style 2 – The Dreamer
Dreamers use their imagination to look at situations from multiple perspectives. They seek to understand situations by reflecting on possible causes and explanations. With strong empathy, they continuously connect what they observe to their own experiences and knowledge.
Dreamers often see many possibilities and potential obstacles, which can sometimes make decision-making slower.
Learning style 3 – The Thinker
Thinkers learn most through observation and internal reflection. They are able to analyse situations and problems from different perspectives and arrive at rational conclusions. They learn best through structured learning resources such as manuals, lectures, or frameworks.
Thinkers enjoy intellectual challenges and are skilled at linking new knowledge to existing insights. They excel at developing theoretical models and concepts.
Learning style 4 – The Decision-maker
Finally, decision-makers complete Kolb’s learning cycle. This learning style focuses on connecting theory and practice and is oriented toward practical application. From an abstract way of thinking, decision-makers translate general theories into concrete solutions, such as diagrams, checklists, or step-by-step plans.
Decision-makers learn best by analysing real-life examples and drawing lessons from them. For instance: how can I repeat these steps to achieve the desired outcome?
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