The Learning Curve Theory: Types, Benefits, Limitations ...

The learning curve is defined as the correlation between a learner's performance on a task or activity and the number of attempts or time ... BacktoBlog EmployeeTraining TheLearningCurveTheory:Types,Benefits,Limitations(2022) April14,2022 DishaGupta Shareonfacebook Shareontwitter Shareonlinkedin Whennewprocesses,tools,ortechnologiesareintroducedintotheworkplace,employeesmayexperienceasteepinitiallearningcurve.Typically,mostlearnersexperiencealearningcurveatthebeginningofanewexperience,andthatinclinetapersoffastheygraduallylearnmoreaboutthesubjectmatter. Theideabehindthelearningcurveconceptissimple:themoreanemployeepracticessomething,thebettertheybecomeatit.Thistranslatestolowercostandhigheroutputinthelongterm. WhatIstheLearningCurveTheory? Whiletheterm“learningcurve”cameintouseintheearly20thcentury,Dr.HermannEbbinghausdescribedthistheoryin1885.Ebbinghaustestedhismemoryovervariousperiodsandcameupwithavisualrepresentationofhowlearnedinformationfadesovertime.TheEbbinghausForgettingCurvedemonstrateshowinformationislostovertimewhenthereisnoeffortmadetoretainit.Later,ArthurBillsdescribedthelearningcurveinhispaper“Generalexperimentalpsychology.”Hesays,“thelearningcurveisagraphicaldeviceforpicturingtherateofimprovementintermsofagivencriterionofefficiency,asaresultofpractice.”Thelearningcurvetheoryisbasedontheconceptthatthereisaninitialperiodwheretheamountinvestedinlearnersisgreaterthanthereturn.However,afterovercomingthelearningcurve,thereturnismuchgreaterthantheinvestment.Theideahereisthatthemoreanemployeepracticesatask,thebettertheybecomeatit,whichtranslatestoalowercostoftrainingandhigheroutputovertime.Thelearningcurvemodelhelpstracktrainingprogress,improveproductivity,andpredictlearners’performanceandimprovementovertime.However,therelationshipbetweentheamountoftimespentpracticinganactivity,andtheoverallperformanceisnotlinear.Therewillalwaysbespecificperiodsforeachactivitywhereasmallamountofpracticewouldyieldmassiveimprovementinoutputorwhereevenminorimprovementsmayrequiremanyhoursofwork.Thisvarianceintherelationshipbetweenpracticeandproficiencyovertimeisknownasthe‘learningcurve.’ WhatIsaLearningCurve? Thelearningcurveisdefinedasthecorrelationbetweenalearner’sperformanceonataskoractivityandthenumberofattemptsortimerequiredtocompletetheactivity.Learningcurveformula->Y=aXbWhere:Y=averagetimeoverthemeasureddurationa=timespenttocompletethetaskthefirsttimeX=totalamountofattemptscompletedb=slopeofthefunction RelatedResources 17BestLearning&Development(L&D)Toolsin2022 TheSpacedLearningEffect:TheKeytoKnowledgeRetention(2022) 12BestLearningExperiencePlatforms(LXPs)in2022 TypesofLearningCurve Herearesomecommontypesoflearningcurves: 1.Diminishingreturns Inthediminishing-returnscurve,therateofprogressionincreasesrapidlyatthestartoflearninganddecreasesovertime. Thegraphabovegraphdescribesasituationwhereataskoractivitymaybeeasiertolearn,initiallyresultinginafastandrapidprogression.Activitiesthatfollowadiminishingreturnslearningcurvearemorestraightforwardwhenmeasuringandpredictinghowtheperformanceandoutputoftheworkforcewillchangeovertime.Intermsofdecision-making,thisresultmeansthattheemployeeisperformingwell,butyouneedtokeepthecostsdownaftertheinitialplateau. 2.Increasingreturns Intheincreasing-returnscurve,therateofprogressionisslowatthestartandrisesovertimeuntilfullproficiencyisachieved.  Thisgraphdescribesasituationwhereacomplextaskislearntwiththelearningratebeingprolongedinitially.Intermsofdecision-making,noactionitemsarerequiredhere,astheinitialcostofslowlearningisquicklyreturneduponreachingthehigh-efficiencyphase.However,iftherestofthedatashowsthatthetaskshouldnottakeverylongforemployeestolearn,thisgraphistakenasanindicationtomodifyyouremployeetrainingmethod. 3.S-curve Thisincreasing-decreasingreturnlearningcurvemodelisthemostcommonlycitedlearningcurveknownasthe“S-curve”model.Thebottomofthiscurveindicatesslowlearningasalearnerworkstomastertheskillsandtakessometimetodoso.Thelatterhalfdemonstratesthatthelearnerisnowtakinglesstimetocompleteataskandhasbecomeproficientintheskills.Atthispoint,thelearner’sperformancewillleveloff,afterwhichonlyslightincreasescanbeexpectedovertime.Thistypeoflearningcurvemaybeencounteredwhenanewproductivitytoolisintroducedtoemployees.IftheplateauisclosertotheX-axis,itrepresentsahighlyefficientperformance.Ontheotherhand,iftheplateauisclosertothetophalfofthegraph,performancemaynotbeasefficient.Intermsofdecision-making,takeacloserlookatthetrainingmethodandothervariablesthatimpactthecostofongoingperformanceintheplateauphase. 4.Complexcurve Thecomplexlearningcurverepresentsamorecomplexlearningpatternandreflectsmoreextensivetracking. Thissuggeststhatthetaskbeingmeasuredischallengingtolearnandtakesacertainamountofpracticebeforeanemployeebecomesproficient. Stage1–indicatesaslowerinitiallearningphase.Stage2–showsanincreaseindicatingthatthelearnerisbecomingproficientintheskill.Stage3–indicatesthatthelearnerisplateauinginhisproficiencyoncetheyhavemasteredtheskill.Stage4–representsthatthelearnerisstillworkingonimprovingtheskill.Stage5–representsthepointatwhichtheskillbecomesautomatic,musclememoryforthelearner,alsoknownas“overlearning.”Thecomplexlearningcurvemodellooksdifferentforeachactivity,individual,orgroup.Learnersencountermultiplepeaksandplateauswhenlearningtaskswithcomplexlearningcurves.Fordecision-making,lookforwaystoimprovetrainingorreducecostsbyhiringcandidateswhoalreadyhavetheexperiencerequiredtoreachpeakefficiencyforthistask.Thelearningcurvemodelhelpsmonitorvariousaspectsofcompanyperformanceandidentifyareasthatneedimprovement.Itprovidesinsightsintoemployeetrainingandperformance,butsomelimitationsexist.Let‘sexaminesomekeyadvantagesanddisadvantagesofthelearningcurvemodel. Createpersonalizedlearning&trainingflowsforyourenterpriseappswithWhatfix Getademotoday! Advantagesofthelearningcurvemodel Thelearningcurvemodelhelpsmonitorvariousaspectsofcompanyperformanceandidentifyareasthatneedimprovement.Itprovidesinsightsintoemployeetrainingandperformance,butsomelimitationsexist.Hereareafewoftheadvantagesofthelearningcurvemodelfororganizations:Betterunderstandemployeeprogress–Comparingdifferentlearningcurveshelpsunderstandanemployee’sprogresswhilelearningaparticulartask,allowingcompaniestomaketrainingadjustmentsaccordingly. Strategicplanning–Thelearningcurvehelpsbuildstrategicplanstoimprovetheoutputofemployeesoranentiredepartment.Createalearningculture–Thelearningcurvehelpsmotivateaworkforcebycreatingacultureofongoinglearningandtrainingevaluation.Decisionmaking–Thelearningcurvehelpsidentifytrendsformakingviablebusiness-relateddecisionsandbetterforecastsforthefuture. NEWEBOOK HowtoBuildaCorporateLearning&Development(L&D)Strategyin2022 Downloadnow-it'sfree! Disadvantagesofthelearningcurvemodel Hereareafewofthedisadvantagesofthelearningcurvemodelfororganizations:Cannotaccuratelypredictfuturecurve–Thelearningcurverecognizescurrentskillsbutcannotpredictthefuturewithcompleteaccuracy.Misleadingdata–Thelearningcurveisinfluencedbyvariablessuchastime,previousexperience,qualityoftraining,etc.Asaresult,trackingonlyoneofthesevariablesmightresultinmisleadingdata.Createsdifferences–Someemployeesaremoreskilledthanothersatspecifictasks,givingthemanadvantage.Thisdifferenceisdisplayedwhilecomparingthelearningcurves,creatingunnecessaryhasslesandjudgments. 8TipsToFlattenTheLearningCurveForEffectiveEmployeeTraining Hereare8effectivetipsfororganizationstousethelearningcurvefordesigningeffectiveemployeetrainingprograms. 1.Defineyourunitofoutput Setlongandshort-termmeasurableoutcomestoevaluateemployeeperformanceandtrainingeffectiveness.Makethepurposeofyourtrainingprogramclearbyidentifyingwhatemployeesareexpectedtoaccomplishbytheendoftraining. 2.Efficientonboarding Tohelpanewhireacquirecompetenceandremainconfidentintheirrole,besuretocreateanefficientonboardingprocess.Astrongonboardingprocessprovidesnewlyhiredteammemberswiththerightinformation,training,andtoolsduringtheirfirstfewweeksatacompany,makingtheirlearningcurvemoreproductiveandmuchshorterinthefuture. 3.Personalizedtraining Createpersonalizedlearningprogramswithtrainingcontenttailoredaccordingtoindividualjobrolesandlearningtypes.Personalizedtrainingboostsemployeeengagement,improvestrainingeffectiveness,andhelpsflattenthelearningcurve. 4.Makeinformeddecisions Ifthedatafromthelearningcurveshowsthatthecurrenttrainingprocessisnotworking,explorealternativeemployeetrainingmethodsandimplementothermodificationstofine-tuneyourtrainingprograms.Itmighttakeafewroundsoftrialanderrortofindtherightchangethatimprovesperformance. 5.Mentorcoaching Oftennomatterhowwellaformalemployeetrainingprogramisstructured,itdoesnotimpartalloftheknowledgeandinformationemployeesneedtoperformtheirroleseffectively.Thisiswhenreal-lifecoachingfromanexperiencedprofessional–asupervisor,mentor,orveteranemployee–canbeeffectivetoacquireknowledgeinreal-time. 6.Investintrainingtechnology Moreorganizationsareleveragingemployeetrainingsoftwaretoimplementeffectivetrainingwithpersonalizedlearningcontentthatusesuseranalyticstohelpshortenthelearningcurveacrossemployees. Thereareafewdifferenttypesofemployeetrainingsoftwarethatcanbeleveragedforcreatingandmanagingemployeetrainingprograms.CorporateLMS–CorporateLMStoolshelpL&Dteamsidentifyandassessbothindividualandorganizationallearninggoals,buildlearningcontent,trackprogresstowardsmeetingthosegoals,andcollectdataforsupervisingandimprovingthelearningprocess. DigitalAdoptionPlatform–Adigitaladoptionplatform(DAP)integrateswithexistingdigitaltoolstoprovideautomated,personalizedtraining–intheflowofwork.DAPsassigneachlearneracontextualtasklistcontaininginteractivewalkthroughsandotherin-appcontentbasedonalearner’sprofile.Walkthroughsarestep-by-steppromptsthatguideusersthroughcertaintasksorprocesses.VideoTrainingSoftware–Videotrainingsoftwareenablescreating,publishing,sharing,trainingvideos–aswellasanalytictrackingfeaturestomeasuretherateoftrainingandlearningprogression.Trainingvideosarecreatedtoprovideknowledgeandinformationforemployeeonboarding,compliancetraining,softwareeducation,etc. 7.Establishtimeframe Toshortenthelearningcurve,youmustestablishatimeframeforachievingthesetofdesiredoutcomestounderstandwhetherornotyourtrainingmethodsareprovidingtheexpectedresults.Forexample,newhiresshouldbeabletocreateandmanageleadsandaccountsonacompany’sCRMplatformaftercompletinga3-weekCRMtrainingprogram. 8.Continuousmonitoring Thelearningcurvetheoryshouldn’tonlybeappliedduringtimesofchangeorwhentrainingdifficultiesarise;instead,monitorthelearningcurveyear-round.Continuousmonitoringuncoversproblemsassoonastheyappear,allowingyoutoeasilycorrectandmodifyyourapproachasrequired. Investineffectivetrainingsoftwaretomaximizethelearningcurve InvestinDigitalAdoptionPlatformssuchasWhatfixtoaugmentyourtrainingprogramsbyenablinginteractive,hands-onlearningdirectlywithinasoftwareapplicationordigitalprocess.DAPseliminatethegapbetweentheoryandpractice,whichautomaticallyengagesemployees’memoryandaccelerateslearning.DAPpromoteeffectiveemployeetrainingby:In-appguidance:DAPgivesemployeesaccesstoallrelevantinformation,resources,documentations,andworkflowstheyneedtolearnanewprocessorapplication. Interactivewalkthroughs:Guidesusersstep-by-stepthrougheverytaskorprocesswithinanapplication.Interactivewalkthroughsareusedforcustomerandemployeeonboardingandtrainingprogramstoencourageahigherlevelofemployeeunderstandingandengagement.Contextualself-help:DAPprovidescontextualsupportinreal-timewithoutemployeeshavingtoraisesupportticketsandwaitforaresolutionfortheirqueries.Contextualhelpisprovideddirectlyinsidethesoftwareandtheguidedstepscanbeimmediatelyappliedwithouthavingtobreakfromthecurrenttaskorsearchforanswersonline.Microlearning:DAPenablesmicrolearningbybringinginshortandconcisesnippetsoftrainingwhichareconducivetohowthehumanbrainremembersinformation.Learninganalytics–DAPhelpscompaniesidentifytroublespotsorblindspotsinemployeelearning.Thepowerfulanalyticstoolmonitorsuseranalyticstoseewhetheremployeesaregettingstuckandcreatesadditionalwalkthroughsorself-helparticlesifneeded. SubscribetotheWhatfixnewsletternow! email Subscribe TableofContents ReadytoWhatfix? RequestademotoseehowWhatfixempowersorganizationstoacceleratetheiremployeelearningprograms Requestademo RelatedPosts 18FreeEmployeeTrainingPlanTemplates(2022) HowtoBuildanEffectiveL&DStrategyin2022 HowtoLeverageSelf-PacedLearninginEmployeeTraining Thankyouforsubscribing! SubscribetotheWhatfixDigitalAdoptionBlog email Subscribe Thankyouforsubscribing! BecomeabetterL&Dprofessionalbysubscribingtoourmonthlynewsletter. email Subscribe TheWhatfixblogisenjoyedbyover180,000monthlyreaders!