Motor Learning and Control Chapter 16 PDF

Because learning changes everything. ® Chapter 16 Practice Variability and Specificity © McGraw Hill LLC. All rights reserved. No reproduction or distribution without the prior written consent of McGraw Hill LLC.  Learning Objectives Explain the meaning of the term...

Because learning changes everything. ® Chapter 16 Practice Variability and Specificity © McGraw Hill LLC. All rights reserved. No reproduction or distribution without the prior written consent of McGraw Hill LLC.  Learning Objectives Explain the meaning of the term practice variability and its relation to predictions of theories of motor skill learning. Discuss ways to implement practice variability in skill learning or relearning contexts. Describe how the contextual interference effect relates to organizing variable practice. Discuss the relevance of contextual interference as a basis for scheduling practice for novice learners and skilled performers. Identify reasons why contextual interference benefits motor skill learning. Describe the practice specificity hypothesis and contrast it with the practice variability hypothesis. Discuss how especial skills challenge the practice specificity and practice variability hypotheses. © McGraw Hill LLC 2  Practice Variability Refers to the variety of movement and context characteristics a person experiences while practicing a skill. Emphasizes that the learner acquires an increased capability not only to perform the practiced skill itself, but also to perform skill in novel situations that might characterize the ones in test. © McGraw Hill LLC 3  Variable versus Constant Practice One way to establish that practice variability benefits future performance is to compare constant practice with variable practice: Constant practice: Involves one variation of a skill. Variable practice: Involves several variations of the skill. Research has shown that greater amounts of variable practice lead to better learning than lesser amounts. © McGraw Hill LLC 4  Figure 16.1: Results from the Experiment by Schoenfelt et al. Source: Data from Schoenfelt, E. L., Snyder, L. A., Maue, A. E., McDowell, C. P., & Woolard, C. D. (2002). Comparison of constant and variable practice conditions on free-throw shooting. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 94, 1113 to 1123. Access the text alternative for slide images. © McGraw Hill LLC 5  Future Performance Benefit of Practice Variability Research shows that more practice variability enhances positive transfer from practice to test contexts. Practice variability benefit can be related to increased performance error during practice. Why would performance errors during practice benefit learning? © McGraw Hill LLC 6  How to Implement Practice Variability Assess characteristics of the future situations in which the learner will perform a skill. When people perform skills, they do so in contexts that have identifiable characteristics. (Gentile’s taxonomy) Closed skills: vary non-regulatory conditions. Closed skills with inter-trial variability: vary regulatory and non-regulatory conditions. Open skills: vary regulatory and non-regulatory conditions. © McGraw Hill LLC 7  Examples of Varying Practice Conditions Basketball free throw (closed skill). Regulatory conditions don’t change so don’t vary. Following non-regulatory conditions could be varied: Number of free throws to be taken, importance to game of making the free throws, crowd noise, and length of the game. Golf shot using a 7-iron (closed: intertrial variability). Potential regulatory conditions that can vary. Width of the fairway, distance of required shot, and location of ball. © McGraw Hill LLC 8  How Would You Vary Regulatory Conditions For This Skill? Corbis/age fotostock © McGraw Hill LLC 9  Organizing Variable Practice Knowing that experiencing practice variability benefits skill learning, we should next consider how to organize the variable experiences. Question that arises here: How should the schedule of practice for variations be organized within the practice time available? The learning phenomenon known as the contextual interference effect provides an answer. © McGraw Hill LLC 10  Figure 16.2: Three Types of Practice Conditions 1 Practice Duration Class day 1 Class day 2 Class day 3 Class day 4 Class day 5 Class day 6 Type Blocked 30 min All All All All All Sidearm All Sidearm practice Overhand Overhand Underhand Underhand Random 5 min Underhand Overhand Sidearm Overhand Underhand Sidearm practice Random 5 min Overhand Sidearm Overhand Sidearm Overhand Overhand practice Random 5 min Underhand Sidearm Sidearm Sidearm Underhand Sidearm practice Random 5 min Sidearm Underhand Underhand Underhand Sidearm Underhand practice Random 5 min Underhand Overhand Underhand Overhand Underhand Underhand practice Random 5 min Overhand Overhand Sidearm Overhand Overhand Sidearm practice © McGraw Hill LLC 11  Figure 16.2: Three Types of Practice Conditions 2 Practice Duration Class day 1 Class day 2 Class day 3 Class day 4 Class day 5 Class day 6 Type Serial 5 min Overhand Overhand Overhand Overhand Overhand Overhand practice Serial 5 min Underhand Underhand Underhand Underhand Underhand Underhand practice Serial 5 min Sidearm Sidearm Sidearm Sidearm Sidearm Sidearm practice Serial 5 min Overhand Overhand Overhand Overhand Overhand Overhand practice Serial 5 min Underhand Underhand Underhand Underhand Underhand Underhand practice Serial 5 min Sidearm Sidearm Sidearm Sidearm Sidearm Sidearm practice © McGraw Hill LLC 12  Contextual Interference (CI) 1 Definition: The memory and performance disruption that results from performing variations of a skill within the context of practice. Originally described by William Battig (1979). The way a practice schedule is organized will involve different amounts of contextual interference. © McGraw Hill LLC 13  Contextual Interference (CI) 2 The contextual interference effect occurs when a high amount of contextual interference results in better learning of the task variations than a low amount. Figure 16.3 Access the text alternative for slide images. © McGraw Hill LLC 14  Research Evidence for the CI Effect The first evidence of the contextual interference effect for motor skill learning was reported by Shea and Morgan (1979). Non-laboratory experiments. Beginners learning multiple skill variations. Goode and Magill (1986): Badminton serves. Skilled performers refining multiple skill variations. Hall, Domingues, and Cavazos (1994): Baseball players hitting different types of pitches. © McGraw Hill LLC 15  Figure 16.4: Results from the Experiment by Goode and Magill (1986) Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, Vol. 57, No. 4, 308–314. Access the text alternative for slide images. © McGraw Hill LLC 16  CI and Judgments About Learning 1 Practice performance influences the learners’ judgments about how much they are learning depending on which practice schedule they experienced. This is known as metacognition. Overestimation of learning occurs for the blocked practice schedule because performance during practice causes learners to misjudge the amount they are actually learning. See experiment by Simon and Bjork (2001) on next slide. © McGraw Hill LLC 17  CI and Judgments About Learning 2 Figure 16.5: Top panel: Percent of absolute constant error during acquisition on 24-hr retention test as a function of blocked or random practice during acquisition. Bottom panel: Learner-made predictions of performance on the 24-hr retention test as a function of blocked or random practice. Simon, D. A., & Bjork, R. A. (2001). Metacognition in motorlearning. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning,Memory, and Cognition, 27, 907–912. Access the text alternative for slide images. © McGraw Hill LLC 18  Limits of the CI Effect Research not only shows considerable support for the contextual interference effect but also shows that it does not apply to all motor skill learning situations. Characteristics related to the limits of the effect: Motor skill characteristics. Researchers hypothesized that the CI effect would more likely be found for motor skill variations controlled by different generalized motor programs than by the same program. Learner characteristics. Age and skill level appear to be the most likely limiting factors. © McGraw Hill LLC 19  Challenge Point Hypothesis (Guadagnoli and Lee, 2004) Proposed the implementation of specific practice conditions that will optimally challenge the person in a way that will enhance skill learning. Lower levels of contextual interference. Optimal for more difficult skills. Optimal for novices and young children. Higher levels of contextual interference. Optimal for skills with lowest levels of difficulty. More effective for skilled individuals. It is important that the practitioner base any practice schedule modification on performance difficulties evident from retention or transfer tests rather than on those from practice sessions. © McGraw Hill LLC 20  Why Does CI Effect Occur? 1 Elaboration hypothesis: The effect is related to a more elaborate memory representation of the practiced skill variations. (Shea and Morgan, 1979) Action plan reconstruction hypothesis: High amounts of CI leads to stronger memory representation because of forgetting and subsequent action plan reconstruction during practice. (Lee and Magill, 1985) © McGraw Hill LLC 21  Why Does CI Effect Occur? 2 Experiments to test both hypotheses have demonstrated three important characteristics: Higher levels of CI involve greater attention demands during practice than lower levels. People who practice according to a blocked schedule tend to overestimate how well they are learning during practice. Higher levels of contextual interference encourage people to make more errors. © McGraw Hill LLC 22  Practice Specificity 1 Specificity of practice hypothesis. View that motor skill learning is influenced by practice condition characteristics. Origins can be traced to Thorndike’s identical elements theory. Also linked to Henry’s specificity of motor abilities hypothesis. © McGraw Hill LLC 23  Practice Specificity 2 Practice specificity hypothesis concerns at least three characteristics of motor skill learning and performance: Sensory/perceptual characteristics. Performance context characteristics. Cognitive processing characteristics. © McGraw Hill LLC 24  Especial Skills Refer to skill variations that are performed markedly better than similar variations. Example: Shooting from the free-throw line Example: Pitching from the regulation distance Especial skills cannot be completely explained by either the practice variability or practice specificity hypotheses. © McGraw Hill LLC 25  End of Main Content Because learning changes everything. ® www.mheducation.com © McGraw Hill LLC. All rights reserved. No reproduction or distribution without the prior written consent of McGraw Hill LLC.