Learning Styles and Academic Performance: A Literature Review
This paper synthesizes multiple research studies examining the relationship between learning styles and academic performance. It reviews key conceptual frameworks, including Vermunt's Inventory of Learning Styles (ILS) and the Learning Styles Survey (LSS), and explores how different learning approaches — pragmatic, intrinsic, and competitive — correlate with academic outcomes. Drawing on studies by Furnham (2012), Boyle et al. (2003), and Abidin et al. (2011), the paper concludes that while learning styles do influence academic achievement, they represent just one of several potential variables that predict educational success.
- Introduction to Learning Styles: Defines learning styles and their influence on achievement
- Conceptual Frameworks and Definitions: Three learning style approaches and personality predictors
- Vermunt's Inventory of Learning Styles: Vermunt's four-style ILS model tested in British students
- Learning Styles Survey and Academic Achievement: LSS study links learning styles to academic outcomes
- Conclusion: Learning styles as one variable among many predictors
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What makes this paper effective
- The paper integrates multiple peer-reviewed sources coherently, using each study to build a cumulative argument about the role of learning styles in academic achievement.
- It correctly identifies nuance — noting that learning styles are one of several predictive variables, not the sole determinant of academic outcomes.
- The conclusion appropriately restates the paper's central finding without overstating the evidence, demonstrating scholarly restraint.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper demonstrates literature synthesis — the ability to bring together findings from multiple independent studies (Furnham, 2012; Boyle et al., 2003; Abidin et al., 2011) and draw a coherent, evidence-based conclusion. Rather than summarizing each source in isolation, it uses the studies to reinforce and qualify one another, which is a core skill in academic writing at the undergraduate level.
Structure breakdown
The paper opens with a broad conceptual definition of learning styles before narrowing to specific models and empirical studies. It proceeds study-by-study — first addressing personality-based predictors (Furnham), then Vermunt's ILS in a British context (Boyle et al.), then the LSS applied to a larger student sample (Abidin et al.) — before a brief conclusion that synthesizes the overall takeaway. This funnel structure moves effectively from theory to application.
Introduction to Learning Styles
Different researchers have described learning styles largely as indicators of individual differences. These differences may manifest in lifestyles and personality types. In particular, learning styles can be understood as the preferred or characteristic ways in which individuals process and convert knowledge. They can also be defined as the cognitive, emotional, and psychological characteristics that serve as relatively stable indicators of how learners perceive, interact with, and respond to the learning environment. Learning styles have an influence on the academic achievement and performance of individuals (Abidin et al., 2011). This paper synthesizes different literature reviews that address learning styles and academic performance.
Conceptual Frameworks and Definitions
There are several conceptions and measures that seek to define learning styles. Learning styles can be distinguished into three approaches: pragmatic (surface), intrinsic (deep), and competitive (achieving) (Furnham, 2012). Each approach to learning is associated with multiple personality characteristics, and academic attainment and performance are predicted by these approaches. The correlation between directness and achievement is facilitated by a deep style of learning. Research indicates that learning styles mediate the relationship between personality variables and academic achievement (Furnham, 2012). According to Furnham (2012), the majority of studies acknowledge that learning styles are just one of the potential variables that predict academic achievement, and questions remain about their incremental validity over other measures.
References
Abidin, M. J., Rezaee, A. A., & Abdullah, H. N. (2011). Learning styles and overall academic achievement in a specific educational system. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science, 1(10).
Boyle, E. A., Duffy, T., & Dunleavy, K. (2003). Learning styles and academic outcome: The validity and utility of Vermunt's Inventory of Learning Styles in a British higher education setting. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 73(2), 267–290.
Furnham, A. (2012). Learning style, personality traits and intelligence as predictors of college academic performance. Individual Differences Research, 10(3), 117–128.
Pellon, M., Nome, S., & Aran, A. (2013). Relationship between learning styles and academic performance of fifth graders enrolled in the medical course. Revista Brasileira de Oftalmologia, 72(3), 181–184.
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