Sequence learning: response structure and effector transfer

Two experiments are reported that investigate the response structure and effector transfer of repeated movement sequences. Participants moved a lever to targets sequentially presented on the computer monitor. In Experiment 1 the learning of 10- and 16-element sequences (identical movement pattern) was contrasted. After 1 day of practice the 10-element sequence was organized into fewer subsequences and, thus, performed more rapidly than the 16-element sequence. The imposed organization appeared to be coded in a relatively abstract way, as evidenced by effector transfer that was as good as that on the retention test. In Experiment 2 the 16-element sequence was studied after more extensive practice. By the end of 4 days of practice the participants produced relatively seamless responses void of obvious transitions between subsequences, but the control of the movement was less effector independent than observed earlier in practice. The results suggest that the process of consolidating the sequence, which led to more fluent response production, also resulted in the utilization of effector specific information.