Implicit learning - 4.1 Flashcards
A model to describe motor learning
Fitts and Posner (1967) suggested a three-stage model to describe the learning process; cognitive stage, associative stage and autonomous stage.
Early stages of the skill are dominated by cognitive concerns about the skill whereas skilled performance is more automatic in nature.
Cognitive stage
The primary concern is with the generic aspects of the skill; what has to be done? What goes where?
Knowledge is explicit and rule-based, and we search for the most appropriate strategy; unsuccessful one’s are discarded, and successful ones are retained.
There are dramatic changes in performance and performance is highly variable with a large number of obvious errors.
associative stage
Involves the refinement of skills and performance changes are more subtle.
The nature of the cognitive activity changes (e.g. more emphasis on error detection), with less glaring errors and variability between trials.
autonomous stage
Involves months or years of practice, automation of skill and can be performed with less interference from other tasks.
It appears like the skill is being performed without thinking about it and knowledge is implicit and non-verbalisable.
There is little, if any, variability between trials.
At what level does autonomous become problematic?
declarative knowledge
Requires awareness, attention and reflection, is consciously recalled and requires constant repetition can transform declarative knowledge into procedural knowledge
procedural knowledge
Occurs without attention, awareness, conscious or other higher cog process and is developed slowly through repetition of act over many trials.
Repeating movement continually under varying circumstances leads to procedural learning
WM system
Stores and manips information. Baddeley (1990)
3 distinct sub systems;
- The articulatory/phonological loop
- The visuo-spatial sketchpad
- The central executive
the articulatory/phonological loop
associated with verbal information
the visuo-spatial sketchpad
is associated with visual and spatial information
the central executive
oversees the others and is linked to attention
WM
A temporary storage space (‘desktop of the brain’, Logie, 1999) where incoming info held and manipulated.
Allows us to keep track of where we are, what we’re doing and provides capacity to hold info long enough to make a decision, write down telephone number, test hyp, or oversee movement
explicit processes
rely on working memory for the storage and manipulation of information and are, therefore, verbally based and open to introspection.
In other words, we are consciously aware of the information being processed and can share that information with others (Seger, 1994).
implicit processes
typically unavailable for conscious inspection and difficult to verbalise (Kellogg, 1982).
implicit learning
…accrual of Knowledge that “… in some raw fashion, is always ahead of capability of processor to explicate” (Reber, 1989)
is implicit learning beneficial?
“Almost everything we do, we do better unconsciously than consciously” (Baars, 1998).
Implicit processes are phylogenetically older than explicit processes (therefore more stable and resilient) – Reber, 1992.
“The zone” (Masters, 2012)
implicit motor learning
…accrual of motor skill without accumulation of, or at least conscious access to, explicit knowledge that underlies perf of the skill. Speculated that it may be possible to evoke these evolutionary old attributes. Implicit motor learning.
why use implicit learning?
pressure
pressure
“There is no better way to ruin performance than to think simultaneously about the details of its execution” (Norman, 1982).
The Bliss-Boder hypothesis (1895-1935) .
the Bliss-Boder hypothesis
suggest we over-analyse, which leads to a switch from expert back to novice levels which ultimately leads to skill breakdown.
self-focus theories of choking
“Under pressure, a person realises consciously that it is important to execute the behaviour correctly. Consciousness attempts to ensure the correctness of this execution by monitoring the process of performance; but consciousness does not contain the knowledge of these skills, so that it ironically reduces the reliability and success of the performance when it attempts to control it”. (Baumeister, 1984)
theory of reinvestment
“…relatively automated motor processes can be disrupted if they are run using consciously accessed, task-relevant declarative knowledge to control the mechanics of the movements on-line” (Masters & Maxwell, 2008)
choking by reinvestment
“A golfer attempting a short putt to win a match might try to recall and use rules that describe the action about to be performed, such as ‘move the clubhead back 10 cm, then smoothly and gently push through the ball and stop 10 cm after hitting the ball, ensuring contact is made with the centre of the clubface and that the arms are…’.
This use of explicit processes is inefficient, attention-demanding and slow, ultimately leading to a breakdown in performance” (p.113). Maxwell et al., 2000.
Move from implicit processes back to novice explicit behaviour.
Rely more on attention and WM memory and this is what causes the breakdown.
reinvestment
“A predisposition to turn one’s attention inward to the mechanics of one’s movements” (Masters 1992).
The susceptibility of skill failure because of reinvestment is determined by three things
1) performance context (anx/fatigue)
2) predisposition (how likely you are to be susceptible to reinvestment
3) degree to which underlying knowledge of the skill is accessible to consciousness as declarative knowledge.
