| A Window into Learning Style and Cognitive Preference |
Paragon Learning Style Inventory |
 
Your Score |
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Q. What does my score mean? A. The score you just obtained from taking the Paragon Learning Style Inventory (i.e., ESFJ, INFP or INTP, etc.) is a measure of some of your cognitive and perceptual preferences. There are 16 learning types possible. All the 16 type are well represented in our society. All are valuable and capable, they are just different in a few fundamental ways. Q. How did this test get developed? A. It began with Carl Jung's theories of personality from the 1940's and evolved through the research of Isabell Briggs-Myers and was developed by John Shindler into the PLSI in 1992. more about this. Q. Will I always be this type? A. Experts disagree, but your learning type should be pretty stable. Most people do not change very much in their lifetime. If you are very young, this kind of test is a bit less reliable, after 25 there should be really no change. But remember a test like the PLSI is only getting at what is inside you and if you are not honest or if you "head is in a funny place" it will make your score less of a reliable indicator of your inner type. Q. What do I do now that I have a four letter type? A. It is hoped that just knowing your type is helpful in understanding yourself. And it may help you see how you are different from others. You may find that some people are harder to understand than others you meet. This usually has something to do with your learning style (also called type in the MBTI). Look at the pages on this site that might help you understand how your learning type most prefers to learn and interact with others. Q. What are the four dimensions? and what do they mean? A. The four dimensions seem to be areas where human beings differ in very fundamental ways or in what could be considered traits. This means these traits are something like left handedness and right handedness. We do not really learn to be one or the other, but most people are just dominant with one hand or the other and not usually both. And while we use both hands everyday, when we need to feel secure we tend to use our preferred hand. This is the same with each of the four dimensions. We use them both, but we usually choose our dominant preference when we need to feel comfortable. Introversion and extroversion are ways of orienting ourselves to ideas and people. Extroverts merge easily with the outerworld and/or people and external reality and introverts are more inner-centered. Extroverts work more outside in and introverts work more inside out. The dimension of Sensation and/or Intuition (also called Practicals and Abstracts by Kolb) is a way of making sense of ideas. Sensates see ideas more as part of physical reality and connected to what is. Intuitives see ideas as a world in and of themselves and see ideas as just as real as things. This area has much to do with preferences in communication, where Sensates often prefer to talk about what is, and Intuitives more often talk about what is perceived and interpreted. The dimension of Thinking and Feeling deals with one's orientation to making decisions. Thinkers tend to make decisions based on logic and ideas whereas Feelers tend to make decisions more based on relation to people and how their actions affect others, especially their feelings. The dimension of judgment and perception (also called Sequentials or Randoms by Gregorc) deals with how one is oriented to the outer world. They use their other preferences to approach their thoughts and actions. Perceivers are very attuned to incoming information and Judgers are very comfortable making judgments and decisions about things. This dimension is very influential in one's orientation to time and physical order.
Q. Should this affect who my friends are? A. It probably already has. Most of us are attracted to people who are like us because they think like us, and what they say makes sense to us. Those people give us a sense of comfort and validation. But almost as often we are attracted to people who are in many areas our opposite. This is because opposite types are interesting to us and exciting to be around because we can feel the contrast. Often this contrast is useful because opposite types can compliment one another and often get a job done more effectively than a group of similar types. Q. Are there better types to be? A. Absolutely not! all the learning types are absolutely critical to make the world function. But certain types are better at some things. Our preferences and styles affect how we work and what we like to do. Learning type is often used to help people find jobs that are best suited to their abilities. For example most artists are Intuitives (N), and are more often feelers (F) and introverts(I). Most engineers are sensates (S) and thinkers (T). Most teachers are feelers (F) and judgers (J) and often SJ's (sensate judgers). Most scientists are NT's (intuitive-thinkers). Q. What should I do with this knowledge when I go back to school? A. It is usually very helpful understanding how you learn. If your teacher is similar to you, your class will likely seem to work well. If your teacher is different form you, you may want to keep that fact in mind when you are frustrated. Here are some ways difference can be experienced in school and what to do about it.
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