| Providing advice to improving training interventions is a high priority among applied psychology researchers. One element of training that is under the control of providers is the nature of feedback provided to learners. Higher specificity of the feedback message has generally been considered beneficial for performance and learning. However, recent research has qualified this relationship, suggesting that the specificity of feedback leads to different types of learning. Less specific feedback encourages task exploration and learning how to respond when task conditions are unfavorable, but is detrimental to learning how to respond when task conditions are favorable. To date, only the specificity of cognitive (i.e., task-related) feedback has been explored. In this study, learning cognitive (i.e., learning-related) feedback was manipulated. This feedback represented feedback about how well one implements abstract learning principles aimed at systematically exploring the task environment. After training, learning on a later transfer task and generalization task (where rules governing task performance had changed) was measured. It was predicted that high learning cognitive feedback specificity would reinforce learning strategies and aid individuals in the generalization transfer task beyond task-related feedback messages. Those participants receiving high specificity learning cognitive feedback showed better learning on a generalization transfer task than individuals receiving low specificity learning cognitive feedback. The results of this study have implications for designing feedback interventions that maximize distal learning outcomes. Specifically, feedback designed to support learning principles can positively affect performance for task conditions not specifically trained for. |
