Knowledge-attitude-behavior (KAB) framework
From The Learning Engineer's Knowledgebase
The knowledge-attitude-behavior (KAB) framework is a conceptual model of understanding the psychological makeup and status of an individual person. The three elements of knowledge, attitude, and behavior comprise the key elements of learning and are things that should be considered when developing educational activites and products. The KAB framework captures a holistic view of a persons' understandings, competencies, and learning.
Definition
The knowledge-attitude-behavior (KAB) framework is a model for measuring and evaluating a person's psychological traits that influence learning.
Additional Information
The KAB framework is composed of three important parts that each influence the other parts.
Knowledge is the primary domain of learning and is concerned with what a person knows how to do and the information that they know. All educational products, activities, and experiences seek to increase a person's knowledge.
Attitudes are the affective, emotional, and belief aspects of a person. Learning theories have regularly shown that a person's emotional state, beliefs, and attitudes toward learning activities and knowledge (i.e., their affect or disposition) can greatly influence their ability to learn and participate within educational activities.
Behaviors are the actions that a person actually takes. Participation within educational activities and products is a form of behavior, as well as performing desired actions and tasks. Behavior differs from procedural knowledge, as a person may know how to do something but choose not to do it (or not know that they were supposed to do it). Ultimately, the goal of all learning is to empower someone to perform positive actions and skills at the appropriate times, so behavior is a necessary component to monitor and measure to see if people actually do the tasks and actions that are expected.
Each of the three KAB components should be promoted in educational products and experiences, as learning theories have repeatedly demonstrated that the process of learning is more complex than just gaining and memorizing knowledge alone. People must feel empowered to learn and gain knowledge (via affect and attitudes), and must also feel empowered to actually use the skills and knowledge that they have gained (through behavior). When a product is evaluated for whether someone actually learned from a product, evaluators should measure and monitor (1) the declarative and procedural knowledge that participants have gained, (2) the attitudes and affect of the learner regarding the content being learned, and (3) whether the participant actually performs desired tasks and skills.
Tips and Tricks
- Each of the elements of the KAB framework are useful for thinking about learning objectives that should be achieved in a product. Not only should people work to gain knowledge as a result of their participation, but they should also develop positive attitudes and dispositions toward the content and activities, as well as actually be able to demonstrate real-life skills and knowledge application through their behaviors.
- Consider the whole KAB framework when designing evaluations. When building an evaluation of whether people achieved learning objectives from using an educational product, the evaluator will benefit from measuring and monitoring each the knowledge that was gained, the attitudes and affect of the person, and records of the actual behaviors and participation of the person.
Related Concepts
- Knowledge of the learner (KAB)
- Attitudes and affect of the learner (KAB)
- Behavior of the learner (KAB)
- Learning objectives and outcomes
- Models and Frameworks
- Evaluation and assessment
Examples
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External Resources
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