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Updated: May 12, 2026

Investigating Motor Skill Learning Processes with a Robotic Manipulandum
Published on: February 12, 2017
Post-power law of practice: Comparing static and dynamical models of skill acquisition
Charles R Weeks1, Michael D Byrne1, Shivam Pandey2
1Department of Psychological Sciences, Rice University.
None:
Since the 1980s, the power law has been the dominant view of the trajectory of skill acquisition. More recent research has challenged this "law," suggesting other models may better capture individual-level data. Furthermore, the motor learning and recovery literature suggests dynamical models might better capture nonmonotonic behavior and the effect of feedback. This study compares the fits of six models on data from two mirror-tracing experiments with different feedback metrics delivered through haptics. This includes two power models, the exponential model, a hybrid power and exponential model, and two more recent dynamical models that allow for nonmonotonic learning curves and can incorporate the role of feedback. Like others before, these results show that the "power law" model is not necessarily the best way to describe individual learning. However, none of the models examined showed a clear advantage in fitting individual-level data, and we discuss multiple reasons why this might be the case. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
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