Learned Irrelevance and Cue Competition Using an Eriksen Flanker Task

Many studies have examined competition between cues for learning. Research examining cue competition has used cues that predict the occurrence of an outcome, or, in some rare cases, competition between cues that predict the absence of an outcome (predicting that an outcome explicitly will not occur). Alternatively, learned irrelevance occurs when a cue lacks the ability to predict the occurrence or absence of an outcome. Using an Eriksen flanker task, the present study evaluated competition among cues that do not have predictive value, that is, competition for learning that an outcome is unpredictable. Subjects' inability to predict the occurrence of compatible and incompatible trials was manipulated by presenting cues that were uncorrelated with these trial types. Accuracy results showed competition between cues possessing a lack of predictive ability. The results are discussed in terms of propositional and associative theories of learning.