The purpose of this study was to examine Battig's (1979) claim that CI may be produced by an interfering task similar or dissimilar to the to-be-learned task(s). In Battig's view, this interference would depress acquisition performance, yet facilitate retention/transfer. While all the studies that have been conducted to examine the CI phenomenon in the motor domain have manipulated the order of practice (blocked vs. random practice), this study not only manipulated the order of practice to promote CI, but also manipulated the interfering activity between trials (counting backward by threes from a given number). / A total of 72 right-handed female students enrolled in introductory psychology classes at FSU participated in this study. They were randomly assigned to four groups (random or blocked x counting or non-counting). The task consisted of learning three similar movement patterns which differed in level of difficulty. The goal of the tasks was to release the starting key, knock down the required gates, and to press the stop key as quickly as possible. / The experiment consisted of four phases: (a) the preliminary phase, (b) the acquisition phase, (c) the interpolation phase, and (d) the retention phase. Two dependent measures, RT and MT, were computed for each subject and for each group. / The results partially supported Battig's (1979) claim that CI may be produced by an interfering task that is similar or dissimilar to the to-be-learned task(s). The results revealed that counting, as an interfering task, has a minimal inhibitory or facilitatory effect on acquisition and retention. However, practice schedule was the main effect of promoting CI. Random practice was shown to depress acquisition, yet facilitate retention. The results of this study are discussed with relation to the level of processing explanation of the CI phenomenon. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 49-08, Section: A, page: 2160. / Major Professor: Tonya Toole. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1988.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_77830 |
| Contributors | Qasem, Fouad Azmi., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 127 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
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