Abstract

FREIBERG HOFFMANN¹, Agustín; BERENGUER², Diego; FERNANDEZ LIPORACE³, Mercedes  and  LEDESMA4, Ruben. Learning Styles, Strategies and Approaches in college students from Buenos Aires . Rev. psicodebate: psicol. cult. soc. [online]. 2017, vol.17, n.1, pp.09-34. ISSN 24516600.

Learning styles, learning strategies and learning approaches are concepts useful to analyze cognitive and metacognitive processes employed by students when they have to deal with learning activities. The learning of contents of each major in college is enabled when the proper cognitive processes required in the field are set in motion. Thus, the analysis of learning styles, strategies and approaches used by students from diverse majors in different moments of their academic pathways arises a matter of interest. 413 college students from Buenos Aires between 17 and 36 years (55.4% males; 44.6% females) participated in the study. They were attending majors such as Psychology, Physics, and Industrial Engineering. From the total sample, 203 students were freshmen whereas 210 were sophomores. Data were gathered using the locally adapted versions of Honey-Alonso's Questionnaire of Learning Styles (CHAEA for its Spanish acronym), the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory (LASSI), and The Revised Two Factor Study Process Questionnaire (R-SPQ-2F). Data were analyzed by means of a MANOVA test, which showed statistically significant differences in almost every style, strategy and approach, by major. Besides findings report that freshmen use more frequently the Pragmatic Style and the Surface Approach than sophomores from the same major. An interaction between major and the degree of advance in the academic pathway on the dependent variables was observed as well. In sum, differences in cognitive and metacognitive processes by major and by degree of advance in the academic pathway of students accounts evidence in this case. This information appears to be useful for universities, educational specialists and psychologists, leading to the design of special programs such as adapting teaching methods to the requirements and necessities detected, special training for students in terms of styles, approaches and strategies, and tutorial systems to improve learning in college.

Keywords : learning styles; learning strategies; learning approaches; college students; majors.

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