Learning Theories & Principles and Quality Health Care
Learning is at the core of the Advanced Practice Nurse (APN). It implies a relatively permanent change in discerning, emotional performance, conduct, and ability as an outcome of the experience. Through learning, people acquire new understandings or abilities and transform their emotional states, feelings, behaviors, and assertiveness (Nye et al., 2019). It is the basis for knowing patients and refining patient-care proficiencies and abilities. An advanced practice nurse should grasp patients’ psychological, social, and expressive arrangements. The primary mental and motor learning ideas beneficial to APNs’ provision of patient care are behaviorist, cognitive, and social learning theories (Nye et al., 2019). The purpose of this paper is to discuss learning theories that are most useful to the advanced practice nurse (APN) in providing high-quality health care to patients.
Behaviorist Learning Theory
Behaviorist learning theory focuses on observable events and connects them to learning principles. According to behaviorists, leaning is an upshot of associations made amidst the stimulus circumstances in the environment and the individual’s reactions that follow. Hence, the view hinges on a stimulus-response model of learning (Lavoie et al., 2018). It attaches a person’s actions to the setting’s stimuli and disengages the internal dynamics that inspire learning (Lavoie et al., 2018). APNs utilize behaviorist concepts to study how to adjust their outlooks and reactions to diverse patient circumstances, refining healthcare. APNs utilize behaviorist-learning theory to perceive a patient’s feedback on the situation and influence the peripheral motivations to accomplish the anticipated learning results.
Cognitive Learning Theory
The cognitive theory centers on what occurs inside a learner’s mind. The theory comprises of several sub-theories. It is widely employed in counseling and education. APNs benefit from this theory since it helps them understand the internal operations of their thought process. In this concept, for people to learn, they must form new understandings by modifying their perceptions and thoughts (Bates, 2019). In addition, the cognitive concept’s usage is a two-way approach where an APN cultivates self-thoughts and patients’ abilities. The comprehension of an individual’s thought pattern is fundamental in the rebuilding of learning models (Lavoie et al., 2018). APNs utilize cognitive learning to comprehend patients’ models and create suitable care practices that deliver excellent care.
Social Learning Theory
Agreeing with the social learning concept, learning mainly happens by observing, viewing other individuals, and defining what ensues for them. Learning is typically a societal procedure, and other people afford convincing replicas as exemplars of how individuals feel, behave, and reason (Mukhalalati & Taylor, 2019). Before emulating perceived actions, individuals appraise and execute a reinforcement examination to evaluate the new conducts’ significance. If other individuals are compensated, they mimic the learning procedure and absorb other individuals’ accomplishments (Mukhalalati & Taylor, 2019). APNs learn from expert consultants on the finest methodologies for refining patient care. If specific care produces excellent outcomes, APNs apprehend the practice’s compensations and incorporate them into patient care.
In conclusion, learning is at the core of patient care. APNs implement many learning theories to improve quality; however, each concept highlights a significant dimension that influences the general learning progression. Together, the ideas afford a wealth of beneficial alternatives and tools to stimulate learning to alter behavior in the healthcare environment. There is certainly no distinct superlative technique to view learning, although all the learning concepts show the necessity to consider every learner’s exceptional traits and stimuli. Nonetheless, the most used concepts utilized by APNs include behaviorist, cognitive, and social learning theories. These learning concepts primarily look at the peripheral setting’s stimuli, in-house thought patterns, and individual modifications.
References
Bates, B. (2019). Learning Theories Simplified: And how to apply them to teaching. Sage.
Lavoie, P., Michaud, C., Belisle, M., Boyer, L., Gosselin, E., Grondin, M., & Pepin, J. (2018). Learning theories and tools for the assessment of core nursing competencies in simulation: A theoretical review. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 74(2), 239-250. https://doi.org/10.1111/jan.13416
Mukhalalati, B. A., & Taylor, A. (2019). Adult learning theories in context: A quick guide for healthcare professional educators. Journal of medical education and curricular development, 6, 2382120519840332. https://doi.org/10.1177/23821205198403
Nye, C., Campbell, S. H., Hebert, S. H., Short, C., & Thomas, M. (2019). Simulation in advanced practice nursing programs: A North-American survey. Clinical Simulation in Nursing, 26, 3-10. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecns.2018.09.005