The role of sleep and practice in implicit and explicit motor learning
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Updated: Jun 12, 2026

The "Motor" in Implicit Motor Sequence Learning: A Foot-stepping Serial Reaction Time Task
Published on: May 3, 2018
Cory A Rieth1, Denise J Cai, Elizabeth A McDevitt
1University of California, San Diego, Department of Psychology, United States.
Abstract:
Sleep is hypothesized to play a functional role in the consolidation of memory, with more robust findings for implicit, than explicit memory. Previous studies have observed improvements on an explicit motor task after a sleep period. We examined the role of massed practice and sleep on implicit and explicit learning within a motor task. Controlling for non-sleep factors (e.g. massed practice, circadian confounds) eliminated both explicit and implicit learning effects that have been attributed to sleep.
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