ADAPTIVE AND PART-WHOLE TRAINING IN THE ACQUISITION OF A COMPLEX PERCEPTUAL-MOTOR SKILL

The aim of the experiment was an evaluation of two methods for the training of a complex perceptual-motor skill. One method was the part training method, where a subject practiced on essential subtasks before performing the whole task. The other method was adaptive training. In adaptive training one of the variables of the task is continually adjusted to conform to the subject's performance level until the subject's performance is sufficient to handle the difficulty level of the whole task in its standard configuration. Both of these training methods are hypothesized to yield better performance on the whole task than practice on the whole task itself. The task was a computer-controlled video game where the subject controlled a space ship that was under the attack of hostile elements. In the part training condition the subject practiced on four subtasks before practicing on the whole task. The adapting variable was the speed of the hostile elements, and subjects in two adaptive training conditions had the speed of hostile elements deliberately slowed at the outset and gradually increased to the standard speed as the subject's proficiency increased. A control condition practiced the whole task throughout. The results found the part-training condition superior to all others. The findings for the two adaptive training conditions were mixed, with one superior and one equal to the control group. The results were discussed in terms of principles of designing training devices and training programs.