The
Brain and personality/learning styles
The brain consists of two interconnecting hemispheres. The idea of 'right brai'n and 'left brai'n thinking was developed in the late 1960s by an American psychobiologist Roger W Sperry. He concluded from his research that the human brain has two very different ways of thinking. One (the right brain) is visual and processes information in an intuitive and simultaneous way, looking first at the whole picture then the details. The other (the left brain) is verbal and processes information in an analytical and sequential way, looking first at the pieces then putting them together to get the whole. Sperry was awarded a Nobel Prize in 1981 for his work. A lot of ubsequent research has gone into this and currently we are aware that things aren't quite as polarized (or as simple) as they were once thought to be.
You can develop the side of the brain that you do not naturally use in order to improve your thinking skills. And awareness of your natural prefereneces, cultural influences and the advanatages and disadvantages involved can help you understand how you 'tick' - and that can help with your studies (class work, note taking, planning, revision ,exam technique etc)....
The Left Hemisphere
of the Brain
|
The Right Hemisphere
of the Brain
|
The left hemisphere processes information by organizing it sequentially and is described as analytical.
This is because it specializes in recognizing the parts or building blocks of a system.
Your left brain:
- Interprets Words
- Does Analysis
- Likes Details
- Makes Plans
- Follows Rules
|
The right hemisphere specializes in combining the parts to produce a whole. Unlike the left, the right hemisphere organizes simultaneously.
It specializes in a method that perceives and constructs patterns.
Your right brain:
- Processes Pictures
- Uses Intuition
- Prefers the 'Big Picture'
- Operates on Impulse
- Uses Imagination
|
While each side of the brain has preferences, both sides are involved in every thought process to varying degrees. The key point is that the majority of us have a dominant brain side. Yet to fully understand a concept or learn a new process, information must make sense to both sides of the brain. Merely appealing to one side or the other results in incomplete comprehension and miscommunication.
For example, although it is most efficient at processing verbal information, language should not be considered as being 'in' the left hemisphere. This hemisphere is able to recognize that one stimulus comes before another (sequential) and therefore the left brain can recognise the word - its meaning and grammatical significance. But verbal perception and generation comes from the right side of the brain. This depends on the awareness of the sequence in which sounds occur - but produces an overall sense of meaning.
It may well be that a left brain language student can learn vocabulary and grammar really thoroughly and therefore does well in an exam but is unable to understand a native speaker because there are too many 'gaps' in the word knowledge to grasp the overall meaning - whereas a right brain dominant speaker can pick up on the general meaning without the full knowledge of vocabulary ... a really good linguist can do both!
Research into the
operation of the right and left hemispheres shows that the effective
processing of information requires access to both as they complement
each other.
Experimentation
has shown that the two different sides, or hemispheres, of the brain
are responsible for different aspects of thinking.
Left
Brain |
Right
Brain |
|
Logical
Sequential
Rational
Analytical
Objective
Looks at parts/detail
|
Random
Intuitive
Holistic
Synthesizing
Subjective
Looks at the
whole/overview
|
People think and
learn in different ways. In any group there will always be evidence
of different learning characteristics, but not only individual preferences have an effect on how you think (or how you think you should think!) - different cultural groups
may emphasize one cognitive style over another and learning institutions also 'school' you into certain ways of thinking. All of these factors can 'skew' the
style you think you prefer! You will see when you look at the list below
that you have been 'taught' which way of learning is 'correct'. That
is a cultural imposition - not necessarily your own natural one.
Both sides of the
brain can reason, but by different strategies, and one side may be dominant.
In fact most individuals have a distinct preference right or left hemisphere
dominated thinking. Some, however, are more 'whole-brained' and are
equally adept at both modes.
In general, academic
school subjects tend to favour left-brain modes of thinking. That is
why you are 'trained' to use methods of study that belong to left-brain
preferences. The value of the right-brain ones is sometimes under-valued
and those who naturally have predominantly a right-brain way of thinking
find learning 'logical subjects' like science and maths difficult because
they have to cultivate a way of thinking that is not natural to them.
They can do it but it takes a lot of effort at first. This can put some
people off the 'logical' subjects and make them think they can only
do creative ones. Those with left-brain preference often are never encouraged
to develop their right-brain enough and that can be a problem at University
level and higher when their are expected to become creative in a logical
field.
Left-brain scholastic
subjects focus on logical thinking, analysis, and accuracy. Right-brained
subjects, on the other hand, focus on aesthetics, feeling, and creativity.
But whenever you take any subject to a high level you require an inter-play
of both sides of the brain. Low level mathematics is following a set
way of tackling a problem - high level mathematics brings creativity
into play in the way a problem is tackled and solved. Mathematics at
a high level can be 'beautiful'. Similarly an English essay at a low
level just requires imagination and feeling expressed (in good English)
on a subject - taken to a higher level, however, essay writing involves
composition that stands full textual analysis and is generated in a
form that is 'ideally suitable for purpose and audience' and yet contains
layers of meaning and subliminal references that take it beyond a personal
level to an academic one.
Gifted and talented
people need to develop both modes of thinking.... that is the way to
excel!
Which Type of
Learner Are You ?
The left brain is
considered analytic in approach while the right is described as holistic
or global.
A successive processor
(left brain) prefers to learn in a step-by-step sequential format, beginning
with details leading to a conceptual understanding of a skill.
A simultaneous processor
(right brain) prefers to learn beginning with the general concept and
then going on to specifics.
LEFT
DOMINANT (Analytical) - Successive Hemispheric Style |
RIGHT
DOMINANT (Global - holistic) - Simultaneous Hemispheric Style |
Verbal learner |
Visual learner |
Sequential thoughts
- follows an argument |
Random thoughts
- goes off and comes in on tangents! |
Processes information
linearly |
Processes information
in varied order |
Responds to logic
|
Responds to
emotion |
Plans ahead |
Impulsive |
Recalls people's
names |
Recalls people's
faces |
Speaks with few
gestures |
Gestures when
speaking |
Good at meeting
deadlines |
Often has trouble
meeting deadlines - leaves things to the last minute! |
Prefers formal
study - silence, still at a desk, prefers bright lights while studying |
Prefers sound/music
background while studying - often studies on the floor! Happy to study
in the lounge in front of TV or in the garden. |
Cannot stand
distraction |
Often does more
than one thing at once. |
Likes details
and specifics |
Ignores detail
- concentrates on the 'big picture' |
You will find that
Organizations tend to display left or right brain dominance. This relates to the culture of the management. If the organization's culture is very much driven by rules and procedures, then it is left brain dominant. Conversely, if the organization is free-wheeling and imaginative, it is right brain dominant. Perhaps you can tell what the dominance of your school or University Department is... you will be happiest in an environment that suits your brain preference.
Here
is a link to a self assessment quiz that allows you to find out your brain preference. Now compare that result to the inventory of characteristics listed below...
Right Brain Inventory |
Left Brain Inventory |
• Visual, focusing on images, patterns |
• Verbal, focusing on words, symbols, numbers |
• Intuitive, led by feelings |
• Analytical, led by logic |
• Process ideas simultaneously |
• Process ideas sequentially, step by step |
• 'Mind photos' used to remember things, writing things down or illustrating them helps you remember |
• Words used to remember things, remember names rather than faces |
• Make lateral connections from information |
• Make logical deductions from information |
• See the whole first, then the details |
• Work up to the whole step by step, focusing on details, information organized |
• Organization ends to be lacking |
• Highly organized |
• Free association |
• Like making lists and planning |
• Like to know why you're doing something or why rules exist (reasons) |
• Likely to follow rules without questioning them |
• No sense of time |
• Good at keeping track of time |
• May have trouble with spelling and finding words to express yourself |
• Spelling and mathematical formula easily memorized |
• Enjoy touching and feeling actual objects (sensory input) |
• Enjoy observing |
• Trouble prioritizing, so often late, impulsive |
• Plan ahead |
• Unlikely to read instruction manual before trying |
• Likely read an instruction manual before trying |
• Listen to how something is being said |
• Listen to what is being said |
• Talk with your hands |
• Rarely use gestures when talking |
• Naturally creative - likely to innovate and do things your own way |
• Prefer to do things in a tried and tested way |
| Need to apply yourself more to develop your true potential |
Need to be willing to try new things and take risks to develop your potential |
This BBC page has a questionnaire for you to work out which part of the brain you use.
To be a really good student you should be aware of which side of the brain you naturally use and then develop (brain exercise!) the other half. This is easier for the right brain people to do as how to use the left is down to organising yourself (which can be done by setting yourself rules, using revision cards etc.... that is what I do). But what do you do to exercise the right brain? E-mail me with techniques you have used and I will pass them on!