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The Effect of Contextual Variety on the Practice, Retention, and Transfer of an Applied Motor Skill
Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport
Abstract
Laboratory research in motor learning has consistently demonstrated higher retention and/or transfer when practice occurs under conditions of high contextual variety (e.g., Lee & Magill, 1983; Newell & Shapiro, 1976; Shea & Morgan, 1979;). In the present study, an attempt was made to determine whether a contextual variety effect could be demonstrated in a standard physical education instructional setting. During practice trials on the long and short badminton serves, male and female subjects performed under either blocked (i.e., all trials of one serve followed by all trials of the other) or varied (i.e., alternating trials of long and short serves) conditions. Retention and transfer tests (i.e., using the service area opposite that employed during the practice phase) were administered at the end of the badminton unit. Although little difference was observed in the performance of the two groups during practice, alternating-trial subjects demonstrated significantly higher retention of the short serve and significantly higher transfer of both serves than blocked-trial subjects. The performance of male and female subjects was not differentially influenced by practice structure conditions. It was concluded that a practice schedule that requires performers to change their plan of action from trial to trial may facilitate the retention and transfer of motor skills in applied instructional settings.
... The second arose in the extension to the parallel learning of several fine motor movement sequences (Wright et al., 1992). The third involved generalizing to the learning of gross motor movements (Wrisberg & Liu, 1991), and the fourth involved generalizing to the parallel learning of several large motor movements (Apidogo et al., 2024). Initially, only the single and undifferentiated criterion of learning served as the basis for a possible generalization (Battig, 1979), but it has since become apparent that the CI effect, similar to the working memory model developed in parallel (Baddeley & Hitch, 1974), could only be systematically demonstrated for sequences of fine motor movements with a high visual-spatial component (Schöllhorn et al., 2022). ...
... Moreover, only four out of the twenty-six studies (15%) focusing on both acquisition and retention phases approved the paradoxical CI effects on both acquisition and relatively permanent gains in some performance outcomes (1 out of 4 outcomes, Wrisberg and Liu (1991) and Menayo et al. (2010); 1 out of 2 outcomes, Aiken and Genter (2018); and 1 out of 1 outcome, Pasand et al. (2016)) ( Table 1). These findings further support the limited paradoxical CI effects in a PE-and/or sports-related context. ...
The paradoxical effects of contextual interference (CI) assume that high CI practices hinder performances during the acquisition phase of learning, while providing more permanent enhancement during the retention phase. This meta-analysis evaluates the possible generalizability of the CI phenomenon in physical education (PE) and sports contexts, with regard to the acute and relatively permanent gains in performance outcomes. A total of 933 records from five electronic databases were screened using the PICOS criteria, of which 36 studies were selected. Outcomes evaluating the performance changes (Δ) from pre-post, post-retention, and pre-retention tests were included. Out of 183 overall pooled outcomes, Δ in only 37 performance outcomes (20%) agreed with the paradoxical CI effects on the acquisition or the relatively permanent gains. No statistically significant overall difference was detected for “Δ pre-post” between low (blocked) (28.9 ± 59.5%) and high (random/serial) (27.9 ± 52.8%) CI (effect size (ES) = 0.1, p = 0.35). An overall significant difference (p = 0.001) in favor of high CI practice was detected in “Δ post-retention.” However, this difference was not large enough (ES = − 0.35) to produce an overall greater long-term gain following high (24.56 ± 4.4%), compared to low (21.9 ± 9.8%) CI (ES = − 0.13, p = 0.18). Out of 10 tested variables, only the age significantly moderated both CI effects (p < 0.0001 for both Δ pre-post and Δ pre-retention) and the female proportion significantly moderated only the first CI effect (p = 0.009 for Δ pre-post). These findings found very limited evidence supporting the recommendation to employ high CI practices to gain a longer-term performance advantage, calling into question the generalization of the CI model to PE and sports practices. High-quality follow-up research evaluating alternative motor-learning models are therefore needed.
... In the studies by Wrisberg and Liu (1991), Hebert et al. (1996), Smith (2002, and Smith et al. (2003) alternating practice instead of a random schedule was presented. In the article by Hall and Magill (1995), an experiment described by Lee et al. (1992), and a study by Shea and Titzer (1993), multiple task learning was implemented. ...
Since the initial study on contextual interference (CI) in 1966, research has explored how practice schedules impact retention and transfer. Apart from support from scientists and practitioners, the CI effect has also faced skepticism. Therefore, we aimed to review the existing literature on the CI effect and determine how it affects transfer in laboratory and applied settings and in different age groups. We found 1,287 articles in the following databases: Scopus, EBSCO, Web of Science, ScienceDirect, supplemented by the Google Scholar search engine and manual search. Of 300 fully screened articles, 42 studies were included in the systematic review and 34 in the quantitative analysis (meta-analysis). The overall CI effect on transfer in motor learning was medium (SMD = 0.55), favoring random practice. Random practice was favored in the laboratory and applied settings. However, in laboratory studies, the medium effect size was statistically significant (SMD = 0.75), whereas, in applied studies, the effect size was small and statistically non-significant (SMD = 0.34). Age group analysis turned out to be significant only in adults and older adults. In both, the random practice was favored. In adults, the effect was medium (SMD = 0.54), whereas in older adults was large (SMD = 1.28). In young participants, the effect size was negligible (SMD = 0.12).
Systematic review registration: https://clinicaltrials.gov/, identifier CRD42021228267.
... 2. (Wrisberg & Liu, 1991) -Authors used alternating instead of random practice. The study is mentioned in the Discussion section, where we compare our results to Brady's (2004). ...
... It is worth noting here that a negative influence of interference is often found for high CI schedules during the acquisition phase or the initial phase of practice. For example, Wrisberg and Liu [8] investigated the effects of blocked and random practice when multiple badminton serves were being learned. Students in the blocked practice group performed all their trials with one type of serve in a repeating pattern (low CI) before they practiced a new service variation. ...
The contextual interference (CI) approach has proposed that a random order of practice for motor skills is superior in facilitating learning compared to a blocked arrangement of practice trials. Two groups of physical education students learned sprint hurdles, employing either an increasing CI practice schedule (n = 23) or a blocked practice schedule (n = 23). In both the practice schedules, the same exercises were used in a different trial order during each learning session. Eleven practice sessions were conducted over a period of six weeks, with two days of practice per week. Ten and 40 days after the acquisition phase, a retention and transfer test were conducted. The results showed no differences between the two practice schedules during the retention tests. However, students practicing with an increasing CI arrangement performed better on the delayed transfer test compared to students which practiced with a blocked schedule. Specifically, the increasing CI group more effectively (p < 0.05) cleared the hurdles due to a lower take-off step angle and longer step length than the blocked practice group. Although utilizing an increase in CI during the learning phase of sprint hurdling produced more persistent learning effects relative to a traditional blocked practice schedule for adult novice learners, further research is warranted to explore the CI effect across a broader range of sport skills.
... In laboratory settings, more apparent advantages of high CI-practice have been reported when learning tasks were controlled using different generalized motor programs (GMP). However, at first glance, sports-related settings produced inconclusive results, with some studies reporting enhanced learning when performing variations of a single task (e.g., same GMP: variations of badminton serve, Wrisberg & Liu, 1991) or tasks that require similar movements (e.g., different GMPs: hitting different pitches in baseball, Hall et al., 1994; or rifle shooting to a different target, Boyce & Del Rey, 1990), while others found no high CI advantage in the retention test when using sport tasks with few similar characteristics (Goodwin & Meeuwsen, 1996;Porter et al., 2020). However, initial contradictions can be resolved by taking a closer look at the origins of GMPs and its inapplicability to sports movements. ...
The contextual interference (CI) model hypothesizes random practice (high CI) leads to inferior acquisition, but superior retention and transfer capabilities compared to blocked practice (low CI). These phenomena are well established in laboratory settings. However, the transfer to applied settings, particularly in sports practice is still under discussion. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis is to evaluate the possible generalisability of the CI phenomenon in sports-based contexts with regard to performance outcomes. Up to April 16th, 2022, five electronic databases (PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, Taylor & Francis, and SciELO) were used to search for relevant studies investigating differences between blocked and random schedules at post-acquisition, retention, and/or transfer tests. Using the PICOS criteria, a total of 933 records were screened. Outcomes evaluating the acquisition, retention, and/or transfer performances in sports skills in healthy participants were included. The quality of the selected studies was scored using the PEDro scale. Thirty-seven studies were selected, of which twenty-seven were of good quality and the remaining ten were rated as fair quality. Out of 205 overall pooled outcomes, only 43 performance outcomes (21%) agreed with the CI phenomenon after the acquisition (18 out of 103), retention (19 out of 84), and/or transfer (6 out of 36) phases. No statistically significant overall difference between blocked and random practice was detected at post-acquisition (effect size (ES) = 0.1, p = 0.154), retention (ES = −0.159, p = 0.141) or transfer testing (ES = −0.243, p = 0.071). The subgroup analysis showed inferior acquisition and superior retention following random practice only in individuals aged 20–24 years (ES = 0.282, p = 0.030 during the acquisition, and ES = −0.405, p = 0.011 during retention), with no difference at transfer testing for this specific age group. No similar significant effects have been concurrently identified during both acquisition and retention phases in any of the remaining subgroups (e.g., examined based on experience level, sports, skills, and testing protocol categories). The present results suggest CI effects can only be confirmed under very limited conditions, which seriously challenges the extension of CI effects to the sport context in general. Problematic conclusions for children's learning are discussed, as well as future research strategies to better understand counterintuitive learning approaches.
The effect of practice schedule on retention and transfer has been studied since the first publication on contextual interference (CI) in 1966. However, strongly advocated by scientists and practitioners, the CI effect also aroused some doubts. Therefore, our objective was to review the existing literature on CI and to determine how it affects retention in motor learning. We found 1255 articles in the following databases: Scopus, EBSCO, Web of Science, PsycINFO, ScienceDirect, supplemented by the Google Scholar search engine. We screened full texts of 294 studies, of which 54 were included in the meta-analysis. In the meta-analyses, two different models were applied, i.e., a three-level mixed model and random-effects model with averaged effect sizes from single studies. According to both analyses, high CI has a medium beneficial effect on the whole population. These effects were statistically significant. We found that the random practice schedule in laboratory settings effectively improved motor skills retention. On the contrary, in the applied setting, the beneficial effect of random practice on the retention was almost negligible. The random schedule was more beneficial for retention in older adults (large effect size) and in adults (medium effect size). In young participants, the pooled effect size was negligible and statically insignificant.
Background
Sensorimotor adaptation and instructional adaptation have been found to be motor learning processes that exhibit additive characteristics when applied simultaneously. This study investigates the effects on acquisition and retention of gait outcomes when interventions corresponding to sensorimotor and instructional learning processes are applied sequentially, i.e., split-belt treadmill training (SBT) and (asymmetric) rhythmic auditory cueing (ARAC), respectively. Factors evaluated include order of sequential intervention, congruence between subsequent interventions, and the relative contribution(s) of each intervention in the acquisition and retention of gait (a)symmetry.
Methods
The repeated-measures study involved six randomized sessions; two controls included SBT and ARAC individually. Four sessions included sequential combinations of SBT and ARAC applied congruently and incongruently. Written informed consent was obtained from ten healthy, young subjects and all experiments were performed on the Computer Assisted Rehabilitation Environment (CAREN). Motion analysis was performed using infrared-reflective markers placed on the subjects’ lower limbs and ground reaction forces obtained from the force plates. Gait asymmetries were assessed for changes in step length, step time, and vertical reaction force and compared against baseline conditions. Between-trial comparisons were then performed using Friedman’s test and post-hoc analysis using Wilcoxon signed-rank test.
Results
Interference (during acquisition) to adaptation and memory consolidation (during retention) patterns exhibited different trends between opposite orders of intervention, and these characteristics were distinctive for step length and step time. Asymmetries during congruent trials were significantly greater than incongruent trials. SBT showed a greater influence (interference) on subsequent adaptation to ARAC than vice versa. Nonetheless, ARAC demonstrated a higher retention of after-effects than SBT – indicating its competitive potential for long-term learning.
Conclusion
The study shows that the order in which we learn to walk symmetrically can affect how well and how long we remember these skills. Based on the outcomes between different intervention order(s) on acquired asymmetries in step length and step time, future sequentially combined strategies can implement this sequence to balance minimizing interference between learning processes while maximizing consolidation of motor memories. This will help personalize future sequential interventions in terms of the targeted gait parameter and the costs acquired in other parameters to maximize the retained after-effects.
Robots were introduced in the field of upper-limb neuro-rehabilitation to relieve the therapist from physical labor, and to provide high-intensity therapy to the patient. A variety of control methods were developed that incorporate patients' physiological and biomechanical states to adapt the provided assistance automatically. Higher level states such as selected type of assistance, chosen task characteristics, defined session goals, and given patient impairments are often neglected or modeled into tight requirements, low-dimensional study designs, and narrow inclusion criteria so that presented solutions cannot be transferred to other tasks, robotic devices or target groups. In this work, we present the design of a modular high-level control framework based on invariant states covering all decision layers in therapy. We verified the functionality of our framework on the assistance and task layer by outlaying the invariant states based on the characteristics of twenty examined state-of-the-art controllers. Then, we integrated four controllers on each layer and designed two algorithms that automatically selected suitable controllers. The framework was deployed on an arm rehabilitation robot and tested on one participant acting as a patient. We observed plausible system reactions to external changes by a second operator representing a therapist. We believe that this work will boost the development of novel controllers and selection algorithms in cooperative decision-making on layers other than assistance, and eases transferability and integration of existing solutions on lower layers into arbitrary robotic systems.
RESUMEN: El objetivo fue determinar el efecto de un programa de entrenamiento de juegos en espacios reducidos como propuesta de alta interferencia contextual, sobre la eficiencia del pase y control del balón en futbolistas juveniles. El diseño fue experimental en paralelo con asignación al azar estratificada donde participaron 20 futbolistas entre 15 y 18 años.Los resultados inter-grupo muestran que la variable pase no presentó diferencias estadísticamente significativas(p = 0,166); sin embargo, los porcentajes de eficiencia para esta variable favorecen al grupo experimental (76,2%vs. 71,9%). Por el contrario, la variable control del balón (91,5% vs. 81,9%) mostró cambios estadísticamente muy significativos a favor del grupo experimental (X2 = 11,61; p < 0,001). Se concluye que la eficiencia de las acciones técnicas del pase y control del balón en el fútbol mejoran con la aplicación de un programa de entrenamiento estructurado, a través de los juegos en espacios reducidos. PALABRAS CLAVE: Juegos en espacios reducidos; Técnica; Fútbol; Eficiencia.
ABSTRACT: The objective was to determine the training program effect small sided games as a proposal of high contextual interference about the efficiency of the pass and ball control in youth football players. The design isexperimental in parallel with stratified random assignment. The participants were soccer players between 15 and 18 years old. Intergroup results elicit that pass variable did not show meaningful statistic differences (p = 0,166), however,efficiency percentages to this variable encourage the experimental group (76,2% vs 71,9%). On the contrary,ball control variable (91,5% vs 81, 9%) showed very meaningful statistical changes in favor to the experimentalgroup (X2 = 11,61; p < 0,001). Concluded that the efficiency of pass and ball control technical actions in footballimproves with the implementation of a training program structured through Small Sided Games and supportsthe idea that games in reduced spaces.KEYWORDS: Small Sided Games; Technique; Soccer; Efficiency.
RESUMO: O objetivo foi determinar o efeito de um programa de treinamento em pequenos espaços comoproposto de alta interferência contextual, na eficiência de passes e controle de bola em jogadores de futeboljuvenil. O desenho foi experimental em paralelo com uma randomização estratificada envolvendo 20 jogadoresentre 15 e 18 anos de idade. Resultados intergrupos mostram que a variável passada não apresentou diferençasestatisticamente significantes (p = 0,166); no entanto, os percentuais de eficiência para essa variável encorajaramo grupo experimental (76,2% vs. 71,9%). Em contraste, o variável controle de bola (91,5% vs. 81,9%) mostroumudanças estatisticamente significativas em favor do grupo experimental (X2 = 11,61, p <0,001). Concludedthat the efficiency of pass and ball control technical actions in football improves with the implementation of atraining program structured through Small Sided Games and supports the idea that games in reduced spaces.
PALABRAS CLAVE: Jogos em espaços apertados; Técnico futebol; Eficiência
A theoretical framework is offered that interprets Battig's (1979) conceptualization of contextual interference in terms of the multiple and variable processing that result from the concurrent presence of tasks in working memory. The central role of cognitive processes in the learning of motor tasks and the influence of these processes on motor performance is emphasized. This theoretical interpretation switches emphasis away from a memorial representation of a motor act comprised of sensory attributes to an active, operationally defined representation.
72 college students learned 3 motor tasks under a blocked (low interference) or random (high interference) sequence of presentation. Retention was measured after a 10-min or 10-day delay under blocked and random sequences of presentation. Subsequent transfer to a task of either the same complexity or greater complexity than the originally learned tasks was also investigated. Results showed that retention was greater following random acquisition than under changed contextual interference conditions. Likewise, transfer was greater for random acquisition groups than for blocked acquisition groups. This effect was most notable when transfer was measured for the transfer task of greatest complexity. Results are considered as support for W. F. Battig's (1978) conceptualization of contextual interference effects on retention and transfer. (13 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
This study investigated the generalizability of results of contextual interference effects by extending previous laboratory research to a field setting. Thirty female subjects (N = 30) learned three badminton serves in either a blocked (low interference), serial (mixed interference), or random (high interference) practice schedule. The subjects practiced the serves three days a week for three weeks. On the day following the completion of practice the subjects were given a retention and transfer test. Results replicated previous findings of contextual interference research by showing a significant group by block interaction between acquisition trials, retention, and transfer. The random group performed better on both retention and transfer than the blocked group. The significant trial block by contextual interference interaction also supports the generalizability of contextual interference effects, as posited by Shea and Morgan (1979), to the teaching of motor skills.
Three experiments, with 84 undergraduates, investigated the paradox that randomly ordering practice trials during motor-skill acquisition is detrimental to practice performance (relative to blocked or repetitively ordered trials) but facilitates retention performance. Results of Exp I refute the notion that this contextual variety effect is actually due to a methodological confounding of the type of reaction paradigm (simple or choice) with the practice order manipulations. In Exps II and III, a 3rd practice trial order (serial) was added that contained identifiable conditions similar to both the blocked and random trial orders. This serial order produced results almost identical to findings observed under random practice conditions. Data provide evidence that event repetitions during skill acquisition have critical consequences on the development of memory and speeded accessibility of action plans. Results are discussed in a theoretical framework that incorporates recently revamped notions of the role of cognition and mental effort in motor-skill acquisition. Relationships between contextual interference and related empirical and theoretical issues in cognition and the area of motor skills are also explored. (48 ref)
This chapter presents a conceptual synthesis of some related, and perhaps, previously unrelated empirical research. The impetus for this chapter arises primarily from our recent explorations of the so-called "contextual" "interference" effect (Lee & Magill, 1983a, 1983b; Lee, Magill & Weeks, 1984; Magill & Lee, 1984) and specifically, the inability of current theories of motor learning to explain why this effect occurs.
This study was planned to pursue the effects of experience and contextual interference found earlier for a coincident-timing task. Male varsity football athletes and men with minimal experience in these tasks were selected as subjects. Battig's views of contextual interference were supported but no effects of experience level were found.
Two experiments were conducted to test predictions, arising from Schmidt's (1975) schema theory of motor learning, related to the effect of variability of initial practice upon subsequent transfer to another task. Rapid linear timing movements were employed to operationally separate the recall and recognition schemata. Experiment 1 showed that training at two different movement times, when given in an appropriate order, facilitated the recall and recognition of a subsequent transfer movement-time task, but only when the criterion movement time was sufficiently outside the range of initial practice. Experiment 2 increased the number of training movement times beyond two, but no reliable transfer effect occurred, although the variable practice groups showed significantly reduction of movement error on the initial transfer trials in the absence of knowledge of results. Overall, the two experiments provided some initial support for Schmidt's schema theory of motor learning. Diane C. Shapiro is now at the Department of Physical Education, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90007.
Schema theory and neo-Piagetian theory were combined to explain psychomotor performance of female children. A curvilinear repositioning task was employed to test motor recall of a novel response. Results indicated support for the schema theory postulation of symmetry of motor memory across varying spatial locations. High M-processors performed significantly better than low M-processors, supporting the tenets of neo-Piagetian theory. It was concluded that a combination of the two theories offers a viable beginning in the understanding of children's psychomotor performance.
The concept of transfer-appropriate processing posits that the value of any particular acquisition or practice condition can only be evaluated when considered in the context of the particular transfer test used to evaluate learning. Further, learning appears to be 'optimized' when the processing activities promoted by the practice conditions are similar to the processing activities that are required by the transfer test. The concept is discussed with relevance to recent findings in the motor learning literature. Limitations and future directions regarding research with particular relevance to the constraints of transferappropriate processing are also discussed.