A wealth of evidence indicates the existence of a consolidation phase, triggered by and following a practice session, wherein new memory traces relevant to task performance are transformed and honed to represent new knowledge. But, the role of consolidation is not well-understood in category learning and has not been studied at all under incidental category learning conditions. Here, we examined the acquisition, consolidation and retention phases in a visuomotor task wherein auditory category information was available, but not required, to guide detection of an above-threshold visual target across one of four spatial locations. We compared two training conditions: (1) Constant, whereby repeated instances of one exemplar from an auditory category preceded a visual target, predicting its upcoming location; (2) Variable, whereby five distinct category exemplars predicted the visual target. Visual detection speed and accuracy, as well as the performance cost of randomizing the association of auditory category to visual target location, were assessed during online performance, again after a 24-hour delay to assess the expression of delayed gains, and after 10 days to assess retention. Results revealed delayed gains associated with incidental auditory category learning and retention effects for both training conditions. Offline processes can be triggered even for incidentalmore »
The representational glue for incidental category learning is alignment with task-relevant behavior
Category learning is fundamental to cognition, but little is known about how it proceeds in real-world environments when learners do not have instructions to search for category-relevant information, do not make overt category decisions, and do not experience direct feedback. Prior research demonstrates that listeners can acquire task-irrelevant auditory categories incidentally as they engage in primarily visuomotor tasks. The current study examines the factors that support this incidental category learning. Three experiments systematically manipulated the relationship of four novel auditory categories with a consistent visual feature (color or location) that informed a simple behavioral keypress response regarding the visual feature. In both an in-person experiment and two online replications with extensions, incidental auditory category learning occurred reliably when category exemplars consistently aligned with visuomotor demands of the primary task, but not when they were misaligned. The presence of an additional irrelevant visual feature that was uncorrelated with the primary task demands neither enhanced nor harmed incidental learning. By contrast, incidental learning did not occur when auditory categories were aligned consistently with one visual feature, but the motor response in the primary task was aligned with another, category-unaligned visual feature. Moreover, category learning did not reliably occur across passive observation or more »
- Publication Date:
- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10275655
- Journal Name:
- Journal of experimental psychology
- ISSN:
- 0278-7393
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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