The implications of Behaviorism and Humanism theories in medical education

The clinical environment remains a key area for learning, and practitioners continue to make a huge contribution to the education of students. Varieties of theories of learning are available for trainers to use in medical education, it is very important to identify the principles of learning and understand how individual differences affect the learning process. It is interesting to think about your own particular way of learning and to recognize that everyone does not learn the way we do. In this review the Behaviorism and Humanism theories have been explored within the field of learning. The distinction made between these two major approaches would seem to suggest that each might be appropriate for different kinds of learning situations. This way, educators who understand the rational behind each of the two theories are provided with some key information for structuring their teaching around teaching models which can be the most successful for particular kind of learning.