Abstract
Cognitive ability significantly influences an individual’s life trajectory. The study explored the cognitive styles of undergraduate students in the Sadar sub-division of West Tripura district, Tripura, during 2024-25. A stratified random sample of 100 students was selected for the investigation. The study addressed specific research objectives and hypotheses related to gender based variations in cognitive style and its connection with academic achievement and creative thinking. Comparison of academic achievement scores between students with systematic and intuitive cognitive styles yielded a significant difference (t = 2.51, p < 0.05), favouring those with a systematic style. Pearson correlation analysis revealed strong positive and significant relationships between academic performance and both systematic (r = 0.86, tr = 16.68) and intuitive (r = 0.70, tr = 13.57) cognitive styles. In particular, students with a systematic cognitive style tended to perform better academically than those with an intuitive style. Further, students with a systematic cognitive style consistently secured higher academic scores compared to their intuitive counterparts. The findings contribute to the broader understanding of cognitive styles in educational settings and provide insights for enhancing academic support strategies in higher education.
The full text of this article is available as a PDF.
Download PDF- Alalouch, C. (2021). Cognitive styles, gender, and student academic performance in engineering education. Education Sciences, 11(9), 502. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci11090502
- Amin, M. M., Khan, M. A. A., Heer, M. P., Shabnum, M., & Amin, M. M. (2023). Cognitive styles and demographic variables: A meta analysis study. International Journal for Multidisciplinary Research, 5(2), 1-10. http://dx.doi.org/10.36948/ijfmr.2023.v05i02.2740
- Behera, N. (2022). The role of cognitive style on academic achievement of university students of the Mayurbhanj district. International Journal of Creative Research Thought, 10(4), 201-206.
- Bellemare Pepin, A., & Jerbi, K. (2024). Divergent perception: Framing creative cognition through the lens of sensory flexibility. The Journal of Creative Behavior. https://doi.org/10.1002/jocb.1525
- Botkin, J. W. (1974). An intuitive computer system: a cognitive approach to the management learning process (Publication No. AAI7409035) [Doctoral dissertation, Harvard University]. https://dl.acm.org/doi/abs/10.5555/906908
- Buch, M. B. (1979). Second survey of research in education. Society for Educational Research and Development, Baroda.
- Cools, E., & Van den Broeck, H. (2007). Development and validation of the cognitive style indicator. The Journal of Psychology, 141(4), 359-387. https://doi.org/10.3200/JRLP.141.4.359-388
- Coop, R. H., & Sigel, I. E. (1971). Cognitive style: Implications for learning and instruction. Psychology in the Schools, 8(2), 152-161. https://doi.org/10.1002/1520-6807
- Giancola, M., Palmiero, M., Piccardi, L., & D’Amico, S. (2022). The relationships between cognitive styles and creativity: The role of field dependence–independence on visual creative production. Behavioral Sciences, 12, 212. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs12070212
- Halpern, D. F. (2012). Sex differences in cognitive abilities (4th ed.). Psychology Press. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203816530
- Ho, S., & Kozhevnikov, M. (2023). Cognitive style and creativity: The role of education in shaping cognitive style profiles and creativity of adolescents. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 93(4). https://doi.org/10.1111/bjep.12615
- Hussin, M., Razali, N. M., & Agussalim, M. (2021). Influence of cognitive style on students’ academic achievement at the National University of Malaysia. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 11(3), 762-771. https://doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v11-i3/8983
- Hyde, J. S. (2014). Gender similarities and differences. Annual Review of Psychology, 65(1), 373-398. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-psych-010213-115057
- Jha, P. K. (2010). The cognitive styles inventory. Rakhi Prakashan.
- Jonassen, D. H., & Grabowski, B. L. (2012). Handbook of individual differences, learning, and instruction. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203052860
- Keen, P. G. W. (1973). The implications of cognitive style for individual decision-making. Harvard University.
- Kriti, K., Singh, A., & Yadav, A. (2025). Analyzing perception and hesitation in the context of home science career aspirations. Indian Journal of Extension Education, 61(1), 32-36. https://doi.org/10.48165/IJEE.2025.61106
- Mangal, S. (2004). Advanced educational psychology. New Delhi: Prentice Hall of India Private Limited.
- McKenney, J. L., & Keen, P. G. (1974). How managers’ minds work. Harvard Business Review, 52(3), 79-90.
- Mehdi, B. (1985). Verbal test of creative thinking. Manual, National of Visual Impairment and Blindness, 82(8), 318.
- Nadaf, Z. A., Nadeem, N. A., & Basu, N. (2019). Cognitive styles, academic achievement and gender: A study of higher education. Think India Journal, 22, 10377. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/338740648
- Padaria, R. N. (2020). Editorial. Indian Journal of Extension Education, 56(3).
- Phillips, L. H., MacLean, R. D., & Allen, R. (2002). Age and the understanding of emotions: Neuropsychological and socio-cognitive perspectives. The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 57(6), P526-P530. https://doi.org/10.1093/geronb/57.6.P526
- Sellah, L., Jacinta, K., & Helen, M. (2018). Predictive power of cognitive styles on academic performance of students in selected national secondary schools in Kenya. Cogent Psychology, 5(1), 1444908. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311908.2018.1444908
- Sikdar, S., & Prakash, S. (2025). Students’ “communication skill” training preferences at Dr. Rajendra Prasad Central Agricultural University, India. Indian Journal of Extension Education, 61(1), 7-12. https://doi.org/10.48165/IJEE.2025.610102
- Singh, J., Singh, N., & Verma, H. K. (2020). A scoping study on learning style, gender, and academic performance of veterinary students of Punjab, India. Indian Journal of Extension Education, 56(1), 70-76.
- Talat, U., Chang, K., & Nguyen, B. (2017). Decision and intuition during organizational change: An evolutionary critique of dual process theory. The Bottom Line, 30(3), 236-254. https://doi.org/10.1108/BL-08-2017-0016
- Taneja, R., Taneja, P., & Goel, M. (2023). Impact of learning styles on students’ creativity: Insights from India. ISVS e-Journal, 10(10), 144-145. http://dx.doi.org/10.61275/ISVSej-2023-10-10-10
- Vera, G. S. (2024). The influence of gender on academic performance and psychological resilience, and the relationship between both: Understanding the differences through gender stereotypes. Trends in Psychology, 1-20. https://doi.org/10.1007/s43076-024-00370-7
- Vranic, A., & Martin, M. (2019). Cognitive style: The role of personality and need for cognition in younger and older adults. Current Psychology, 40, 4460-4467. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-019-00388-6
- Zhang, L. F., & Sternberg, R. J. (2005). A threefold model of intellectual styles. Educational Psychology Review, 17, 1-53. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-005-1635-4
Looking up citing articles…

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.