One Trial Learning and the Suppression of Interference

Abstract

An experiment was made to investigate the conditions under which a subject who has learned a series of items in one order can relearn the same items in a different order in one trial. The hypothesis tested was that one-trial learning is ensured in this situation if interference between the two tasks is reduced to zero. It is shown that complete suppression of such interference, obtained by overtraining on the task which is learned first, is not sufficient to ensure the learning of the second in one trial. Comparison of the present experiment with a similar one reported by Mandler and Heinemann (1956) suggests the hypothesis that the discovery of order in the stimulus situation is necessary, in addition to the suppression of interference, if one trial learning is to occur. The relation of the results to the problem of negative transfer is also discussed.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Gagné

R. M.

Baker

K. E.

Foster

(1950). On the relation between similarity and transfer of training in the learning of discriminative motor tasks. Psychol. Rev. 57, 67–79.

Köhler

(1947). Geslalt Psychology New York.

Mandler

(1954). Transfer of training as a function of degree of response over-learning. J. exp. Psychol. 47, 411–17.

Mandler

Heinemann

S. H.

(1956). Effect of overlearning a verbal response on transfer of training. J. exp. Psychol. 52, 39–46.

McClelland

D. C.

(1943). Studies in serial verbal discrimination learning. IV. Habit reversal after two degrees of learning. J. exp. Psychol. 33, 457–70.

Porter

L. W.

Duncan

C. P.

(1953). Negative transfer in verbal learning. J. exp. Psychol. 46, 61–4.

Riopelle

A. J.

(1953). Transfer suppression and learning sets. J. comp. Physiol. Psychol. 46, 108–14.

Siipola

E. M.

Israel

H. E.

(1933). Habit interference as dependent upon stage of learning. Amer. J. Psychol. 45, 205–27.

Stevens

S. S.

(1951). Handbook of Experimental Psychology New York.

10.

Underwood

B. J.

(1951). Associative transfer as a function of response similarity and degree of first list learning. J. exp. Psychol. 42, 44–53.

11.

Williams

E. J.

(1949). Experimental designs balanced for the estimation of residual effects of treatments. Austral. J. Sci. Res. (A) 2, 149–68.