Continuity of Experience

The formation of our thought patterns, the development of habits, and the influence of context are fundamental elements of education and particularly of learning processes. These concepts are horizontal, lifelong factors that shape personality. Every step taken in the realm of experience shapes and structures the next. The aspects repeatedly considered and structured at each step form a unity through the concept of the continuity of experience.

John Dewey’s concept of the “Continuity of Experience” clarifies this process and also carries within it a degree of constancy. In his book Experience and Education, he states: “The essential quality of habit is that every experience carried out and lived through modifies the person who acts and experiences it. Whether we will it or not, this change affects the quality of subsequent experiences because the person who lives them is now quite different. The principle of the continuity of experience shows that every experience draws something from previous experiences and in turn alters the quality of those that follow.”^【1】 This foundational insight, upon which paradigms have been built, is clearly articulated here.

Our experiences and repeated actions are fundamental factors that shape us. According to John Dewey’s experiential learning theory, every experience we live in the present deeply influences our thought patterns, and this influence ultimately forms the foundation of our behavior over the long term. Positive experiences shape an individual’s worldview in a favorable direction, while negative experiences can leave deep imprints on a person’s life. These imprints affect our future decisions, attitudes, and responses.

What if our experiences are identical and continuous?

We define identical and continuous experiences behaviorally as habits. However, this should not be viewed as an all-encompassing definition. Although we initially perceive habits as psychomotor behaviors, our ways of thinking and our responses are also included within habits, complicating the matter. Dr. Wendy Wood’s research on habits, which I have been studying for some time, demonstrates that repeated actions and habits can reorganize brain activity. Dr. Wendy Wood explains this as follows: “We knew that repeatedly performing the same task reorganizes brain activity. We also knew that when habits are triggered by familiar contexts, they guide our actions.”^【2】 Repeatedly performing a specific action can lead to lasting changes in the brain, enabling us to carry out behaviors automatically without conscious effort. This allows habits to become a force that guides an individual’s behavior. While they may create perfection in psychomotor terms, they also establish a clear framework for our decision-making mechanisms. For example, an athlete who trains regularly improves their success rate, and a student who writes regularly increases their writing speed—these can be evaluated as improvements in psychomotor abilities. When we consider thinking patterns as habits, we can say that decisions made under certain conditions are frequently repeated, and the analysis of the situation in subsequent evaluations diminishes. Continuously repeating an action can lead to lasting changes in the brain, even becoming rigid and unchangeable. This is significant in relation to issues such as prejudice and critical thinking. Awareness of this phenomenon is frequently considered and structured in the design of learning environments.

Our experiences and repeated actions form a cycle that shapes us. Experiences influence our thought patterns, and these thought patterns direct us toward specific actions. When these actions are repeated, they become habits, and habits in turn determine our behavior. This process is a complex interaction that constructs an individual’s identity, values, and attitudes.

The influence of context on our experiences and habits is also of great importance. We can generalize this as the conditions we find ourselves in at any given moment. Our experiences are typically lived within specific contexts, and these contexts determine the meaning of the experiences. Similarly, our habits are activated when triggered by particular contexts. This highlights the interaction between the individual and their environment, and the impact of this interaction on thought patterns and behavior.

It is nearly impossible to reconstruct our immediate environments and conditions every time. However, we can still anticipate this situation and shape certain principles and guidelines. Every environment in which we gain experience, and the contexts of these environments, carry us toward the next experience, and we must repeatedly recognize that they transform us. This leads us to a simple but genuine conclusion: the environment shapes the individual.

In conclusion, our experiences and repeated actions are fundamental elements that constitute us. Every experience we live in the present enriches the individual’s inner world, and this enrichment forms the foundation of our behavior. Habits, meanwhile, integrate these experiences and actions into an interactive network that becomes automatic and produces long-term changes in the individual’s life. Therefore, consciously focusing on our experiences and repeated actions is a process that contributes to our own development.