Sense of agency and ideomotor learning: High dispositional sense of agency is linked to better action-effect learning

Abstract

This study examined whether the dispositional sense of agency modulates ideomotor learning and the implicit acquisition of action-effect sequences. Two experiments using a serial reaction time task were conducted, differing only in the structure of R-E mappings: a compatible, structured mapping (Experiment 1) versus an incompatible, unpredictable mapping (Experiment 2). Across both experiments, participants responded to visual stimuli embedded in a repeating sequence, with each response triggering a tone. Dispositional agency, assessed through the French sense of agency scale, enhanced sequence learning in Experiment 1: participants with higher scores on the sense of positive agency subscale exhibited faster reaction times, greater disruption following sequence change and stronger recovery after reinstatement. This effect was absent in Experiment 2, suggesting that dispositional agency supports learning only when R-E contingencies are coherent. Situational agency, measured at key task points, followed similar patterns but was not significantly modulated by dispositional agency. Post-experimental interviews revealed limited explicit awareness of the sequence structure. These findings suggest that dispositional agency enhances predictive learning under structured conditions, without guaranteeing explicit access to learned regularities. The results underscore the critical role of R-E structure in shaping learning and the subjective experience of control.