Would you like to learn more? Retrieval practice plus feedback can increase motivation to keep on studying.

Retrieval practice can boost memory and long-term retention. The present research suggests that it may also benefit another domain that is critical for learning, namely motivation. In three experiments, subjects studied Swedish vocabulary by means of retrieval practice - with or without corrective feedback - or restudy. After a final memory test, subjects were left alone for a short period of time, and could choose freely if they wanted to learn more about the Swedish language and Sweden as a country. Retrieval practice with - but not without - feedback increased the time that subjects chose to invest in continued engagement in the materials. The results provide first evidence that retrieval practice plus feedback can increase motivation to keep on studying, potentially by making one's own progress in learning more transparent and enhancing experience of competence. Caveats and potential limitations are discussed.