Abstract
This study was undertaken to develop a computer simulation model which would be able to simulate cognitive-style-related learning behaviors for a group of students. Studies and research findings have suggested that behaviors under certain learning situations could be correlated with cognitive styles. How cognitive styles were correlated with learning behaviors needed to be extracted and be incorporated into the computer simulation model so that the model would be able to provide validated simulation results. The population for this study was the students enrolled in the courses offered by the Interdisciplinary Education Program, Texas A&M University. Fifty-seven students have been used as the sample. A questionnaire with hypothetical learning situations has been developed to survey the subjects' behaviors. The Group Embedded Figures Test (GEFT), which was a standardized test, has been administered to measure the subjects' cognitive styles. The crosstabulation and the Phi statistic were used in analyzing the data and revealed no significant association between cognitive styles and learning-related behaviors for the sample. Nevertheless, there was some evidence that subjects with extreme cognitive styles might be significantly different in certain learning behaviors. A computer program was developed to simulate the learning behavior in aggregate of a group of students for the hypothetical situations on the questionnaire. The major components in the simulation program were the random number generator, which was a microcomputer built-in function, and cumulative probability distributions which were derived from the sample data. The simulation model generated satisfactory simulation results in terms of presenting a general view of the behavior of a group of students.
Chou, Shi-Che (1984). A computer simulation of cognitive-style-related learning behaviors for students in interdisciplinary education at Texas A & M University. Texas A&M University. Texas A&M University. Libraries. Available electronically from
https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /DISSERTATIONS -435109.