Affective learning is the process through which a student develops or changes attitudes, values, emotions, and motivation as part of the learning process. It’s not just about what you learn, but also about how you relate to it.

This type of learning plays a key role in education that aims for personal development and societal transitions – such as transdisciplinary learning, impact learning, challenge-based learning, ethical reflection, and social-emotional skills.

Watch this short video (2 mins) for an introduction to affective learning goals, explained through Bloom’s taxonomy.

February 2025 will see the start of the university-wide elective ‘Verkeerd Verbonden’, where students will develop the IDGs ‘courage’, ‘trust’ and ‘empathy’. We will then start implementing an Affective learning trajectory within three degree programmes at the UvA, through the Zichtbare Leerlijnen Programma (Visible Learning Trajectories Programme, ZLP). You can apply to participate via the link below. 

Affective learning enhances students' personal development. Using the Inner Development Goals (IDGs), our students develop the skills and attitudes needed to make a valuable contribution to future society. The IDGs were formulated by a Swedish NGO in collaboration with an international group of renowned researchers, experts and practitioners in the fields of leadership development and sustainability.

The overarching IDG framework consists of 23 skills and attitudes divided into five categories, including ‘complexity awareness’, ‘perseverance’ and ‘co-creation’. By addressing these aspects from the beginning of their studies, students can use these skills to develop themselves throughout their lives.

To ground affective learning in evidence, we research whether students develop the intended skills through targeted learning activities. The interdisciplinary elective course ‘Verkeerd Verbonden’ provides an opportunity to test this innovative education and serves as a small-scale pilot for measuring personal development within the framework of affective learning at the University of Amsterdam. In this course, students develop skills for engaging in dialogue about complex situations. The learning activities — including lectures, interactive exercises and reflective assignments — are designed to foster three Inner Development Goals (IDGs): empathy, courage and trust.

The research, conducted by Lotte Brinkhof under the supervision of Sanne de Wit from the UvA Habit Lab, combines both quantitative and qualitative methods. Using Visual Analogue Scales, self-reported IDG skills are measured before, during, immediately after, and ten weeks following the course, in order to track any changes. At the end of the course, students are invited to reflect on their personal development using the Most Significant Change method. In addition, they share their experiences and reflect together on their development in a focus group.

The results are analysed to identify recurring themes in students’ personal growth. The aim of the research is not only to gain insight into the impact of this specific course on personal development and IDG skills, but also to develop reliable instruments for evaluating affective learning in broader educational contexts. The first results are expected in July 2025.

By the end of this project, we will have integrated cognitive and affective learning in 14 degree programmes, developed new teaching materials, professionalised teacher teams and established a community of practice for teachers. In addition, we are publishing a handbook for university teachers on affective learning and sharing our findings with other universities within the Netherlands and beyond.

On Monday, December 1, 2025, the new Special Interest Group (SIG) Affective Learning will kick off with an inspiring launch event at REC Impact (JKTB.20). During the meeting, three UvA colleagues will share how they apply affective learning in their own fields. The kick-off marks the start of a broader range of offerings related to affective learning.

Teachers can also register for the four-day teacher training Affective Education, in which they will work with affective teaching methods under the guidance of experienced trainers.