Abstract: The paper introduces two means of category learning, classification and inference learning, in terms of the learning condition, information process and final memory. Classification is a kind of inductive inference and its learners are highly sensitivity to diagnostic features between categories and possibility to learn exemplar, whereas inference learning is a deductive process and its learners are focus on within-category information and possibility to learn prototype. Different types of category learning lead to different category representations. Research on two kinds of category learning is consistent with the interpretation-base view of categorization and these results are reviewed.

Key words: category learning, categorization, classification, inference