The Power of Emotion at the Heart of Learning

The power of emotions is at the heart of learning. If you want learners to retain your training, create an environment connecting to their emotions.

“People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did,

but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

– Maya Angelou

Of the three domains of learning described by educational psychologist Benjamin Bloom’s Taxonomy, the affective domain remains the least explored. Yet it holds the greatest potential to aid learning professionals in their relentless quest to make learning more memorable and actionable and invite learners to change workplace behaviors and achieve business results.

While tapping into emotion during the learning process is not a new concept, leveraging its full potential has sadly been overshadowed by the persistent “shiny new object-ism” that inevitably follows the announcement of new learning and development technologies and trends. Yesterday, it was flipped classrooms, mobile learning, and augmented reality (AR)/virtual reality (VR). Today, it’s artificial intelligence (AI). What will it be tomorrow?

As technologies and trends come and go, one thing remains the same: human emotion is, was, and always will be. By applying the latest advancements in behavioral psychology and neuroscience research, we can help our constituents learn and work better.

Why Emotions Matter

Affective learning focuses holistically on the emotional aspects of learning, such as feelings, attitudes, and motivations. It aims to create a learning environment that fosters positive emotions, significantly enhancing engagement, retention, and the desire to apply the learning back on the job.

According to a report by WorldatWork, transactionally engaged learners focus solely on the task at hand, missing the bigger picture. Emotionally engaged learners understand how the task fits into the broader scope, thereby improving productivity and performance.

Let’s explore how infusing a few of the above-mentioned learning trends with an affective approach boosts learning outcomes.

Social Learning

As biologically social creatures, human beings inevitably prefer collaboration over isolation. And, let’s face it, learning and working together rather than alone is just more fun. According to psychologist Albert Bandura, social learning involves observing, imitating, and modeling others’ behavior. But it’s more than that. Forms of learning, such as group assignments, team challenges, discussion forums, and structured interactions with colleagues, foster collaboration and create group norms that produce desired workplace behaviors more rapidly. By cultivating an emotionally supportive group dynamic, teams improve their communication work output and enhance their retention as positive memories are formed and reinforced.

Microlearning

We learn better when content is divided into easily digestible bits. Better still if those bits are spaced out over time and accessed when most relevant. We can go one step further by infusing bite-sized content with emotionally engaging material, to leave learners remembering more and wanting more. Affective approaches include theming, gamification, storytelling, and branching-path scenarios.

Self-Directed Learning

Popularized by educator Malcolm Knowles, andragogy posits the idea that adults are inherently motivated to learn. Unlike traditional pedagogy, which often centers around passive learning and instruction, andragogy empowers learners to engage with the content actively, make decisions about their learning paths, and apply knowledge in real-world contexts. Self-directed learning fosters an emotional investment in the material, making the experience more meaningful and enjoyable and thus, more memorable. When adults feel that their learning is relevant, self-driven, and supported, they are more motivated and engaged.

“…when employees achieve their own goals, they become emotionally engaged.

When their goals are aligned with the organization’s goals, everyone wins”.

– Robert Sylwester, Professor of Education at the University of Oregon

Reflective Learning

A critical reflection on experiences often leads to a change in perspective. Here, we invite learners to assess themselves gently and critically. According to researcher Barbara Zimmerman, Critical Thinking can deepen our understanding of complex subjects. The learner connects their emotions with their experiences, facilitating a more profound understanding.

Technology-Enhanced Learning

When leveraged with emotional engagement, mixed-reality tools like VR and AR, as well as digital tools like AI, can help create interactive and engaging learning media and environments. These technologies enhance affective learning by including elements that evoke positive or profound emotions. Yet, while they might be effective, virtual and augmented reality environments remain expensive and time-consuming to build—especially when done well. That’s why these technologies are more widely used in industries requiring realistic simulation, as the cost of operating virtual equipment is significantly lower than that of heavy machinery, aircraft, etc.

The power of emotions is at the heart of learning. While this brief article introduces a few possibilities for applying affective learning, we have only scratched the surface of the limitless potential of leveraging human emotion in adult learning. We invite you to join us in keeping this topic in mind as we strive to create more practical and powerful learning experiences.