Learning

as a Habit is
anthropological research on
the learning behaviors and
mo,va,ons at the workplace,
conducted at The MASIE Center
from January to March, 2015.

Facts and numbers

LEARNING AS A Habit

The opportuni,es for making learning a habit in the workplace

Consider the impact our habits

have on how and when we learn
More
learning
moments

Adapt to
changes

Daily or weekly ac,ons or rou,nes you perform

to acquire new knowledge or prac,ce a skill

78%

Individuals report having learning habits

Individuals perform a combina,on of
digital and face-to-face learning habits
Individuals associate with having one or
two primary learning habits
Individuals learning habits evolve to adapt
to situa,onal and technological changes

Some individuals percep,on of learning is

inconsistent with their own learning habits

Predominately learning and

development professionals from
twelve dierent countries.

People are creatures of habit habits

are regularly repeated behaviors that
save ,me and conserve cogni,ve energy

The Challenge

Self-directed
learning

Learning Habits

584 survey responses

36 interviews

How to select, built and sustain good

learning habits in the workplace?

Read

Watch

Listen

Quote of the day

Industry news
Newsle\ers
Ar,cles
Books

TED talks
Tutorials
Videos
Demos
News

Audio books
Podcasts

Follow

Engage

Internal network
Thought leaders
Social network
Communi,es
Forums

Meet with experts

Learn from others
Share and discuss
Ask ques,ons
Teach

A<end

Search

Try Out

Credited degree
Online courses
Workshops
Webinars

Find innova,ve ideas

Look up a new term
Find resources
Research

Quizzes and puzzles

Try new rou,nes
Try new ideas
Simula,ons
Prac,ce

Reect

Write

Find new perspec,ves

Reect and set goals
Divergent opinions
Analyze cases
Debrief

Post on social media

Keep topic journal
Project updates
Take notes
Blogs

10 types of learning rou2nes

Habitual Mind Subconscious habit forma,on

Execu2ve Mind Conscious cogni,ve processing

Rou,ne
The behavior
itself
Cue
Triggers the
behavior

Reward
Benet from
the behavior

Cues and rewards is a intricate

combina,on of ac,ons, emo,ons and
decisions that are less observable than
the behavior itself (Duhigg, 2012)
Cues

Rewards

Interest
Drive
Expecta,on
Curiosity
Purpose

S,mula,on
Performance
Quality work
Innova,on
Accomplishment

Marke,ng uses customer buying habits to drive

sales. (Mar2n, 2009). Similarly, learning habits
are subconscious cogni,ve behaviors.
What can the
learning
industry do?

Reminders

A Learning
Culture

Sustaining
learning habits

Time

Short
curated
content

Possible learning cues and rewards

Something to Consider
How can organiza,ons analyze and
form learning habits to drive learning?
What are organiza,ons doing that
breaks learning habits?

Behavior-centric design

Create small wins

Easy access to content

Send reminders
Track and report progress

Small realis,c goals

Choose eec,ve
learning habits

AdopEng a new learning habit

Novelty sparks thinking and interests
Create new learning opportuni,es

What else?

Possible opportuni2es for learning habits in the workplace

Time
Complexity
Procras,na,on
Learning Devalued
Compe,ng Priori,es
Roadblocks delay or interrupt the
an,cipated reward, resul,ng in
nega,ve emo,ons such as stress or
frustra,on.

Jennifer Cheng has lived in Hong Kong, Toronto

and Beijing. She has taken leave from her role at
PwC to conduct this residen,al research at The
MASIE Center. She likes to explore, innovate and
observe.
Jennifer Cheng: cheng_jennifer@hotmail.com
Ellio\ Masie & The MASIE Center: emasie@masie.com
Website: www.masie.com
Mar,n, Neal. 2009. HABIT: The 95% of behavior markers ignore. Duhigg, Charles. 2012.
THE POWER OF HABIT: Why we do what we do in life and business. Carey, Benedict.
2014. HOW WE LEARN: The surprising truth about when, where, and why it happens.