Learning Style Assessment

We specialize in psychological and educational evaluations that produce comprehensive learning style assessments tailored to support people across all stages of life. Whether you’re a student preparing for academic transitions, an adult navigating career growth, or a parent seeking answers about your child’s development, our evaluations are designed to unlock deeper understanding and provide actionable insights. We use evidence-based tools to assess styles, cognitive strengths, executive functioning, mental health, and more. With a personalized, client-centered approach to learning style testing, we aim to empower individuals to thrive in school, work, and everyday life. Each learning style assessment is followed by a detailed feedback session and a custom report, highlighting strengths, challenges, and clear recommendations for success.

Learning Style Assessments: Overview

What a Learning Style Assessment Involves

A learning style assessment measures how you prefer to take in, process, and express information.

Components of Learning Style Assessments:

• Learning Style Testing
  • Questions often ask how you’d prefer to process something new — through reading, watching, listening, discussing, or doing.
  • Example:

When developing a new skill, I prefer to:
a) Watch someone demonstrate it
b) Read instructions
c) Try it out myself
d) Listen to someone explain it

• Situational Prompts
  • Some tools give scenarios and ask how you’d respond, like choosing between a video or a book to understand something, or deciding how to study for a test.
• Learning Style Testing Scoring Mechanism
  • Your responses are tallied to identify dominant styles or intelligences.

Theories and Models Behind Learning Style Assessments

Different learning style assessment models focus on different ways of thinking:

VARK Model

Developed by Neil Fleming, it focuses on sensory preferences:

• Visual: Diagrams, charts, maps
• Auditory: Lectures, discussions, recordings
• Read/Write: Text-based input/output (notes, books)
• Kinesthetic: Hands-on experiences, real-life examples

Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences

Howard Gardner suggested that intelligence is multifaceted:

• Linguistic: Word-smart
• Logical-mathematical: Number-smart
• Spatial: Picture-smart
• Bodily-kinesthetic: Body-smart
• Musical: Sound-smart
• Interpersonal: People-smart
• Intrapersonal: Self-smart
• Naturalistic: Nature-smart

This model is often used in education to tailor content delivery and to identify giftedness.

Kolb’s Experiential Learning Cycle

• Emphasizes how we process experiences:
  • Concrete Experience
  • Reflective Observation
  • Abstract Conceptualization
  • Active Experimentation
• Results in 4 styles: Diverging, Assimilating, Converging, Accommodating

How a Learning Style Assessment Helps (Applied Benefits)

Learning Style Assessments In Education:

• Customized study methods: Flashcards for those who do best with visual, podcasts for auditory, role-play, or models for kinesthetic.
• Improved memory: People remember better when the presentation of material aligns with their natural preferences.
• Accessible educational accommodations: Supports IEPs or disability services with insights into preferred formats.
• Helps teachers adjust teaching methods for each child
• Facilitates and strengthens Therapeutic Tutoring

Learning Style Assessments In the Workplace:

• Helps supervisors adapt to suit employee needs.
• Supports team communication by recognizing different styles.
• Helps ensure proper job placement and workplace accommodations
• Helps refine and strengthen leadership coaching

Learning Style Assessments In Self-Development:

• Encourages metacognition (thinking about how you think).
• It can reduce frustration and burnout by helping you work smarter and express your strengths.
• Help with assessing career paths and job changes

Learning Styles Test Measures

Psychological assessments can provide valuable insights into a person’s personality, cognitive strengths, mental health, and behavior. These tools are used in education, therapy, workplace settings, and personal development. Here’s a breakdown of major types of learning styles test methods, with examples and what they measure:

Cognitive Learning Style Testing

• Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) / Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC)
  • Measures: Overall intelligence (IQ) and specific areas like verbal comprehension, working memory, and processing speed.
  • Use as a learning styles test: Diagnosing learning disabilities, ADHD, or intellectual giftedness.
• Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Cognitive Abilities
  • Measures: Broad and narrow cognitive skills, like fluid reasoning, short-term memory, and visual processing.
  • Use: Educational planning and identifying strengths/weaknesses.
• Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scales
  • Measures: Verbal and nonverbal intelligence across five areas.
  • Use: IQ testing for both children and adults, including gifted programs or cognitive delays.

Learning Style Testing for Cognition

• Conners’ Comprehensive Behavior Rating Scales
  • Measures: ADHD symptoms, executive functioning, emotional distress, and various challenges.
  • Use as a learning styles test: Common in ADHD diagnosis and behavioral evaluations for children/adolescents.
• Cognitive Assessment System (CAS)
  • Measures: Planning, attention, simultaneous, and successive processing.
  • Use: Especially useful for identifying how students think and comprehend.

Personality Tests in Learning Style Assessments

• Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)
  • Measures: 16 personality types across four dimensions (e.g., introversion vs extroversion).
  • Use as a learning styles test: Personal development, career guidance, team dynamics.
• Big Five Personality Test (OCEAN)
  • Measures: Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, Neuroticism.
  • Use: More evidence-based than MBTI, used in psychological research and workplace settings.
• Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI)
  • Measures: A wide range of mental health traits, including depression, anxiety, paranoia, and social introversion.
  • Use: Clinical settings for diagnosing psychological disorders.

Emotional and Social Functioning

• Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i)
  • Measures: Emotional intelligence (self-awareness, empathy, emotion regulation).
  • Use as a learning styles test: Coaching, leadership training, therapy.
• Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS)
  • Measures: Social awareness, cognition, communication, and autistic traits.
  • Use: Assessment tool for autism spectrum traits in children or adults.

Behavioral & Adaptive Functioning

• Behavior Assessment System for Children (BASC)
  • Measures: Behavior patterns like aggression, attention problems, anxiety, and adaptability.
  • Use as a learning styles test: Evaluating behavior and emotions.
• Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales
  • Measures: Communication, daily living skills, and socialization.
  • Use: Useful for diagnosing developmental disorders or intellectual disabilities.

Career & Motivation Learning Style Assessments

• Strong Interest Inventory
  • Measures: Career interests based on personality and preferences.
  • Use as a learning styles test: Helps match individuals to compatible professions.
• Holland Code (RIASEC)
  • Measures: Interest areas: Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising, Conventional.
  • Use: Career counseling, especially in school or college settings.

Executive Function Learning Style Assessments

• Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF Test)
  • Measures: Executive skills like working memory, organization, planning, and self-monitoring.
  • Use as a learning styles test: ADHD diagnosis, school, and life functioning assessments.
• Continuous Performance Tests (CPT)
  • Measures: Attention span, impulsivity, and sustained focus.
  • Use: Common in ADHD and neurological assessments.

How These Learning Style Test Measures Help:

• Educational planning: Learning style assessments help educators tailor strategies and accommodations.
• Mental health assessments: Learning style testing assists therapists in diagnosing and planning treatment.
• Career interests and workplace: Learning style testing informs job fit, team roles, and development.
• Self-insight: Promotes personal growth and better understanding of strengths, challenges, and potential.

Learning Style Assessments: Case Example 1, Pre-high School

Here’s a detailed case example of how a learning style assessment could be used with an 8th grader to help prepare for the academic and personal challenges of high school.

Learning Style Assessment for an 8th Grader

• Name: Jordan
• Grade: 8th
• Age: 13
• Background:
  Jordan is a bright and curious student with solid grades but often feels overwhelmed by multitasking and struggles with test prep. His teachers note that he’s easily distracted in traditional lecture settings but thrives in hands-on labs and small group activities. We referred him for learning style testing to help him prepare for high school.

Learning Styles Test Measures Administered:

1. VARK Learning Style Inventory

• Purpose: Identify preferred modes.
• Result:
  • Visual: 35%
  • Kinesthetic: 40%
  • Auditory: 15%
  • Read/Write: 10%

Jordan learns best through hands-on activities and visual representations. Traditional lectures and textbooks are less effective.

2. Executive Function Assessment: BRIEF-2 Learning Styles Test

• Purpose: Assess cognitive processes related to organization, attention, working memory, and self-monitoring.
• Result Highlights:
  • Working Memory: Below average
  • Planning/Organization: Low
  • Inhibition: Within normal range
  • Shift (flexibility): Mild difficulty

Jordan struggles to juggle tasks, keep materials organized, and remember multi-step instructions — all critical for high school success.

3. Multiple Intelligences Survey (Based on Howard Gardner’s Theory)

• Purpose: Understand broader cognitive strengths beyond IQ.
• Result:
  • Bodily-Kinesthetic: High
  • Visual-Spatial: High
  • Interpersonal: Moderate
  • Logical-Mathematical: Moderate
  • Linguistic: Low

Jordan thrives in movement-based, spatial, and creative tasks, but does not learn best from traditional lecture and writing-heavy formats.

4. Cognitive Ability Screener: WISC-V Subtests (selected)

• Subtests Used:
  • Working Memory Index
  • Processing Speed Index
• Result Highlights:
  • Processing Speed: Average
  • Working Memory: Below average

Confirms challenges seen in the BRIEF-2; working memory is a key area for support.

5. Social-Emotional Screening: Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ)

• Result:
  • Peer Relationships: Strong
  • Emotional Regulation: Age-appropriate
  • Hyperactivity/Inattention: Slightly elevated
  • Conduct and Prosocial Behavior: Normal

Jordan is socially well-adjusted but may need strategies for staying focused in less stimulating environments.

Learning Style Assessment Interpretation and Insights:

Strengths Indicated on Learning Styles Test Results:

• Jordan comprehends quickly through experiential tasks like science labs, role-plays, and building projects.
• He has a strong memory for visuals: diagrams, charts, infographics.
• He engages better when movement or physical interaction is involved.

Challenges:

• Passive environments (e.g., long lectures, textbook-heavy subjects) cause disengagement.
• Struggles with abstract instructions — needs to “see” or “do” something to understand it.
• Has trouble retaining verbal-only information (e.g., oral instructions).

Action Plan to Prepare for High School:

1. Study Strategies

• Use color-coded notes, mind maps, and concept sketches.
• Watch tutorials or videos for difficult subjects.
• Use flashcards with images for subjects like biology or history.
• Turn studying into a physical game or activity (e.g., vocabulary scavenger hunts, hands-on math manipulatives).

2. Classroom Accommodations

• Request to sit near the front and away from distractions.
• Use fidget tools or stress balls during long lectures (helps kinesthetic learners stay focused).
• Encourage use of graphic organizers in English and social studies classes.
• Allow for movement breaks or careful scheduling in block-scheduled high school classes.

3. Test Prep

• Build study guides with visual elements: timelines, diagrams, and flowcharts.
• Act out processes or events (especially for history or science).
• Practice tests in short, active bursts, mixing up locations and study styles.
• Assess for potential exam accommodations in later grades

4. Parent and Teacher Support

• Share results with the high school guidance counselor to build a transition plan.
• Teachers can incorporate more active learning strategies in lessons.
• Parents can help create a visual, organized study space at home.

Expected Outcomes

• Jordan enters high school with greater self-awareness and confidence.
• He’ll have decreased frustration with learning and improved focus in challenging classes.
• Teachers will better understand Jordan’s learning preferences and provide appropriate support.
• He’ll have improved organization and retention through personalized strategies.

Case Example 2: Learning Style Testing for Graduate School Prep

• Name: Serena
• Age: 24
• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Psychology, applying to Master’s programs in Counseling
• Presenting Concerns:
  Serena is intelligent and motivated, but reports increasing anxiety, test-taking difficulties, and trouble focusing for extended periods. She wants to optimize her understanding and manage the mental load of grad school. She refers herself to us so we can provide learning style testing to see whether she needs accommodations and to prepare her for graduate school generally.

Learning Style Assessments Administered

1. Style Inventory (VARK + Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences)

• Purpose: Identify Serena’s preferred methods of acquiring and processing information.
• Results:
  • VARK:
    • Visual: 30%
    • Auditory: 25%
    • Read/Write: 15%
    • Kinesthetic: 30%
      ➤ Multimodal preference with strong visual and kinesthetic preferences.
  • Multiple Intelligences:
    • Intrapersonal: High
    • Interpersonal: High
    • Verbal-Linguistic: Moderate
    • Logical-Mathematical: Low
      ➤ Strength in emotional insight, reflective practice, and collaborative environments.

2. WAIS-IV (Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale – Fourth Edition)

• Purpose: Measure Serena’s cognitive strengths and weaknesses.
• Results:
  • Verbal Comprehension Index (VCI): 115 (High Average)
  • Working Memory Index (WMI): 95 (Average)
  • Processing Speed Index (PSI): 85 (Low Average)
  • Perceptual Reasoning Index (PRI): 120 (Superior)

Serena demonstrates strong reasoning and verbal comprehension, but slower processing speed and working memory may impact performance on time-bound exams and fast-paced coursework.

3. Executive Function Assessment (BRIEF-A – Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function – Adult)

• Purpose: Assess how Serena manages tasks, attention, and problem-solving in daily life.
• Results:
  • Challenges in Task Initiation, Organization of Materials, and Working Memory.
  • Stronger performance in Emotional Regulation and Self-Monitoring.

Serena is internally driven but may struggle with getting started, staying organized, and juggling multiple responsibilities — key aspects of grad school life.

4. Mental Health Screeners

• Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI): Moderate
• Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II): Minimal
• Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS): Positive indicators, referred for formal evaluation

Anxiety symptoms may be interfering with Serena’s academic performance, especially under pressure. ADHD screening suggests she may benefit from further neuropsychological assessment for attentional concerns.

5. Study Habits and Motivation Inventory (SHMI)

• Findings:
  • Strong intrinsic motivation (driven by passion for counseling)
  • Low scores in time management and test preparation
  • Reports burnout from overstudying without effective retention

Serena is deeply committed but needs a smarter, more structured study approach.

Summary Learning Style Assessment Profile

Strengths From Learning Styles Test Results:

• High reasoning skills, verbal intelligence, and interpersonal awareness
• Reflective, emotionally insightful — ideal traits for counseling
• Motivated, with a strong personal connection to her field

Challenges:

• Working memory and processing speed could slow down performance on dense readings or timed exams
• Anxiety and potential undiagnosed ADHD contribute to distractibility and inconsistent productivity
• Needs help with study efficiency, structure, and coping strategies

Action Plan for Graduate School Success

Academic Strategies:

• Use visual study aids, such as charts, infographics, and mind maps
• Break reading into short chunks with reflective note-taking (e.g., Cornell Method)
• Use voice-to-text tools and screen readers to reduce processing demands
• Practice time-bound quizzes to prep for exams and build speed

Organizational Tools:

• Use planner apps with reminders
• Color-code notes and use organizational bins or folders
• Pomodoro Technique for task initiation and sustained attention

Mental Health Support:

• Refer for formal ADHD treatment and holistic interventions
• Engage in short-term CBT to manage test anxiety
• Build a self-care routine with scheduled breaks, movement, and mindfulness

Support Systems:

• Connect with grad school disability office to discuss academic accommodations for ADHD.
• Set up peer study groups to leverage Serena’s interpersonal strength

Learning Style Assessment Final Thoughts

Serena is highly capable and emotionally intelligent. With the right combination of cognitive insights, study strategies, and mental health support, she is well-positioned to survive and thrive in graduate school.

Conclusion and Our Work

We believe that self-understanding is the foundation for meaningful progress. Our learning style assessments don’t just deliver scores — they spark growth, inform educational planning, and guide supportive interventions at home, school, or work. Testing can walk with you every step, whether you’re preparing for the next academic milestone, exploring learning differences, or managing attention, memory, or emotional concerns. Learning style testing can help you move forward with clarity, confidence, and the tools you need to succeed.

Contact us or schedule a consultation for more information about how learning style testing can benefit you or a loved one.

Dr. Alan Jacobson, Psy.D., MBA Founder and President

Dr. Jacobson is a senior-level licensed clinical psychologist who has been practicing for over 20 years. He founded the Virtual Psychological Testing Group in 2021. He provides psychological and neuropsychological testing for adolescents and adults.

See Full Bio

Psychology Psychological testing Neuropsychological testing