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This book examines the role of psychology in informing adult education practice. It acknowledges the psychological dimension of adult education work, and explores this dimension in the context of the concerns of adult educators. The approach is to examine the most important traditions of some key psychological theories and to discuss the issues and problems in applying them to an understanding of adult learning and development. The text is ideally suited for those who seek a critical understanding of psychological theory and research from the perspective of the adult educator.
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Psychology and adult learning Psychology and adult learning Second edition Mark Tennant London and New York First published 1997 by Routledge 11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge 29 West 35th Street, New York, NY 10001 RoutledgeFalmer is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2003. © 1988 and 1997 Mark Tennant All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication Data Tennant, Mark. Psychology and adult learning/Mark Tennant. –2nd edn. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index. 1. Adulthood—Psychological aspects. 2. Adult learning. 3. Learning, Psychology of. 4. Psychology. I. Title. BF724.85.C64T46 1997 155.6–dc20 96–28530 ISBN 0-203-44161-3 Master e-book ISBN ISBN 0-203-74985-5 (Adobe eReader Format) ISBN 0-415-14991-6 (Print Edition) Contents List of figures and tables Preface vi vii 1 Introduction 1 2 Humanistic psychology and the self-directed learner 7 3 The psychoanalytic approach 21 4 The development of identity during adulthood 36 5 The development of intelligence and cognition 57 6 Learning styles 80 7 Behaviourism 94 8 Group dynamics and the group facilitator 107 9 Critical awareness 123 10 Concluding comment: psychology as a foundation discipline in adult education Bibliography Index 135 142 157 v List of figures and tables FIGURES 4.1 6.1 6.2 9.1 Adult development: basic research designs The performance of extreme field independent (a) and field dependent (b) subjects in Witkin’s (1950) rod and frame test The experiential learning model An illustration used by Freire 41 81 89 124 TABLES 3.1 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 5.1 5.2 6.1 6.2 7.1 8.1 8.2 9.1 9.2 Erikson’s stages of psychosocial development Educational responses to life cycle tasks A sample of statements from Gould’s questionnaire Hierarchy of adaptive mechanisms Developmental tasks of the adult years Some methods and views on the developmental process Differences between best and worst life outcomes relevant to an Eriksonian model of the life cycle Comparison of concrete operations and formal operations on two tasks Kohlberg’s stages of moral development The educational implications of cognitive styles Kolb and Fry’s learning styles The learning system design process Steps in the Nominal Group Technique Some approaches to group development Mezirow’s charter for andragogy Contrasting traditions in the framing of issues in adult education vi 32 39 42 43 46 48 50 61 70 83 90 105 117 120