The relationship between Kolb's experiential learning styles and Big Five personality traits in international managers

•Relationship between Kolb's experiential learning style and personality was examined.•269 international managers completed NEO-FFI and KLSI 3.1.•Extraverted managers tend to have an accommodative learning style.•Kolb's experiential learning style construct is associated with personality, but is also distinct from personality.

This study investigates the relationship between learning style and personality in international managers. Two-hundred-and-sixty-nine managers completed the NEO Five Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI) and Kolb's Learning Style Inventory (KLSI 3.1). Regression analyses revealed that extraverted managers: have a preference for grasping new experience by engaging in concrete experience rather than abstract conceptualization; prefer to transform experience via active experimentation rather than reflective observation; and tend to have an accommodative learning style. It was concluded that while Kolb's experiential learning style construct is associated with personality, it is also distinct from personality.