HOW TALENTS LEARN

Prof. Dr. Wim Gijselaers

Definitions

Talent “… stable, genetically

determined factors constrain the ultimate level of performance. Consequently, empirical research has focused on identifying and measuring talent relevant to particular types of activity. A practical extension of this view is that, by testing individuals at a young age, one can select the most talented children and provide them with the resources for the best training.” Ericsson & Lehman (1996).

Annu. Rev. Psychol. 1996. 47:273–305

Expert Superior and Reproducible

performance of representative tasks captured by the essence of a domain. Professions (Health, Engineering,

Law) Sports , Games, Art

Expertise “… the characteristics, skills and

knowledge that distinguish experts from novices and less experienced people.

Chess Masters vs Recreational Chess

Medical Specialists vs Students Ericsson (2006). Cambridge

Handbook of Expertise, p.3.

“Like other world-class performers, Mozart was not born an expert – he became one”. (Ericsson, K.A., Prietula, M.J., Cokely, E.T., 2007, p.121)

Definitions: Experts

“People who have attained expert levels of performance for a domain of tasks, and who possess specialized mechanisms (e.g. memory skill, reasoning strategies, and metacognition skills) fitted to that task that allow for superior performance (Salas & Rosen, 2010, p.102).”

“No one would want to go to doctors, lawyers, or psychotherapists who lacked knowledge of their fields (Sternberg, 2000).”

Expertise & Decision Making

What is Needed?

A theory about expertise development Role of Experience

Sonnentag and Klein (2000) showed in their research that the length of experience does not influence excellent performance as characterized by peer nomination procedures, but that the nature and the amount of work accomplished does.

Role of the learning / work environment A theory about expert performance

Changes in our cognitive system Demonstration of superior behavior

Identification of TalentClassic Role of ExperienceImpact of Learning / Work Climate

Research on Expertise Development

Finding Talented People & Career

Research shows that every 10 point increase in your GMAT score correlates to another $5K in your starting salary after business school. Higher scores help you to gain admission into more competitive, higher-ranked MBA programs, which in turn brings more job opportunities and higher salaries. In short, it pays to prep.

http://www.kaptest.co.uk/gmat/preparing

Talented People

3 Persistent Assumptions & Leading Questions:1. Talent is Innate2. Talent is Portable3. Potential for Talent can be Identified

and Developed Early

Talent & Performance

Famous Talents & Experts

The 10,000 – hour rule

Academy of Music Berlin (1990s) Divide school’s violinists into three groups.

1. The stars. Potential to become world-class soloist 2. Merely ‘good’ 3. Students who will be music teachers

Q: Over the course of your career, how many hours have you practiced? 5 years old, no difference: 2 – 3 hours per week 8 years old, differences emerge 20 years old. Group 1 (10000 hrs), Group 2

(8000 hrs), Group 3 (4000 hrs). Ericsson (2006). Cambridge Handbook of Expertise

Issue1: The Importance of Time?

Does it all come down to spending time? ... No!

“However, it is much more about getting engaged in Deliberate Practice which requires opportunities to learn, immediate feedback, role models & mentoring, and Reflection.”

Famous Talents & Experts

Famous Talents & Experts

After Years of Academic Research!

Issue 2: Is it all about Psychological Safety?

Unfortunately, ... yes. Trust Safety

But even more important it is about the feedback culture within the company combined with Challenges & Accountability

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By Dave LoganI’ve visited dozens of companies in 2010 and keep hearing the same message: the person at the top is clueless and unwilling to change.  As a result, employees spend absurd amounts of time managing around him (it’s usually a him).  It’s not just the Emperor Has No Clothes.  It’s that the Emperor Has No Clothes and Looks Funny Naked. But if you had the courage to have these conversations with the man in charge, you could transform the lackluster leader into a great one, and boost the company's bottom line in the process.

How Does Performance Develop over Time?What is the Relationship Between Changes in the Cognitive System and Performance

Research on Expert Performance

How Experts Develop

K.A. Ericsson (2004) Academic MedicineK.A. Ericsson (2004) Academic Medicine

Issue 3: Expert’s Thinking

What differences do we notice between beginners and masters when: Confronted with

regular game position?

Confronted with random pattern?

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10

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30

40

50

60

Hospital Type

Small RegionalHospitals

Semi-SpecializedHospitalsAcademicHospitals

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Rate of Success

Floor Vernooij (2008) Utrecht UniversityFloor Vernooij (2008) Utrecht University

How Experts Perform: Treatment of Ovarian Cancer

Issue 4: Expert’s Behavior

Experts work in professional networks.

The structure of these networks is a good predictor for further development

Feedback-Seeking Behavior is the key to understand the nature of these networks.

A Brief Explanation about Cognition

http://cmap.ihmc.us/publications/researchpapers/theorycmaps/theoryunderlyingconceptmaps.htm

... ...

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ChunkChunk

Contextual Rules

Consequences of ExpertiseCognitive Limitations

As expertise increases: Mental representations become abstract Details of a task become less salient

Inability to articulate expertise to people with less expertise Electronic experts gave less concrete

instructions to novices Novices perform better when instructed by

those with less expertise The “curse of knowledge” makes it difficult to

imagine ever having been ill-informed

Consequences of Expertise:Social Conditions

“Not invented here Syndrome”: Managers do not mention relevant details Managers are reluctant to seek knowledge from

other sites “Not relevant to our operations”

Disincentives on Information sharing: Marketing & engineering share less information

when strong identification with their own group. “Esprit de corps”

Development of Expertise

18 22 44 65 yrs AGE

Performance1

2

3

• What is the most likely expertise model?• What should the individual do to grow?• What should Companies / Organizations do to make

people grow?

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“MANAGING CREATIVE TALENTS IS A VERY DELICATE AFFAIR … YOU HAVE TO BE ABLE TO CRITICIZE AND DISAGREE, WITHOUT BEING DISAGREEABLE”

Valérie Hermann, YSL.Financial Times, Monday September 17th, 2007.

Summary I

1. Expertise requires practiceDeliberate practice1. Repetition with minor variations2. Immediate feedback3. Connected to prior experience4. Ownership

2. School-to-work shock• At the workplace students have to reshuffle their

problem-solving behavior and re-organize the knowledge

3. Seven years post-graduate experience • The transition from business school to practice is not a

smooth, linear path but a road paved with performance shocks

Summary II

Expertise in one domain is not a good predictor for expertise in another domain

Knowledge provides the platform for expertise

Experience makes it ready for use Feedback should result in Reflection to

keep learning Experts INFER from reality while novices

observe isolated facts

Any Questions so far?

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Implications for Management of Learning / Work Cultures

THANKS