Dyadic Protocols and the Acquisition of Complex Skills

Abstract

This study investigated whether the benefits of distributed practice and deliberate observation could afford two trainees the same level of effective performance as an individual with all hands-on practice on a complex skill. In this two-part study, a total of 156 participants were randomly assigned to either an Individual protocol, Alternate Play and Observe (APO-Dyad) protocol, Observation Only dyad (OO-Dyad) protocol, Observed Player (OP) protocol, or the Alternate Play and Rest (APR) protocol. Consistent with the research hypotheses in Study 1, the analyses revealed no significant difference between the APO-Dyad, Individual, and OP protocol on acquisition scores. The OO-Dyad protocol participants performed significantly lower than the Individual, APO-Dyad, and OP protocol, as expected. In Study 2, the Individual, APO-Dyad and APR-Dyad did not differ significantly on the acquisition scores.