Contextual Interference Effects on Acquisition and Transfer of a Complex Motor Task

Abstract

Research in motor skill and verbal memory suggests that random sequencing of trials results in retention and transfer that is superior to blocked presentation of trials. The contextual interference effect is based largely on relatively simple motor and verbal tasks. The present study explores the generalizability of the contextual interference effect to a complex flight simulator task. Subjects (66 males and 45 females) were assigned to three groups (i.e., whole-task, part-task blocked, and part-task sequenced) and trained on a desktop flight simulator. Part-task blocked subjects practiced 13 component tasks presented in blocks (low contextual interference), and part-task sequenced subjects practiced the same component tasks presented in a sequence that was repeated several times (high contextual interference). It was predicted that part-task sequenced subjects would show superior retention and transfer compared to blocked subjects. Results indicated that whole-task subjects showed the best retention and the two part-task groups did not differ. Additionally, all three groups showed equivalent performance on the transfer task. These results suggest that the contextual interference effect may not generalize to complex tasks.