Institute of Psychology, RWTH Aachen University, Jägerstraße 17-19, 52066, Aachen, Germany.
Psychon Bull Rev. 2024 Apr;31(2):802-818. doi: 10.3758/s13423-023-02338-7. Epub 2023 Sep 19.
We examined how flexibly we plan sequences of actions when we switch between multiple action sequences. Mastering a sequential skill is assumed to involve integrating successive actions into groups known as chunks that can be efficiently planned and smoothly executed. Chunking is suggested by gains in planning efficiency for long compared to short action sequences following practice and learning associations between actions and perceptual outcomes. Less is understood about how efficiently we plan sequential chunks when we switch between multiple action sequences. Do we plan learned chunks less efficiently when we switch to a different action sequence? We examined this question by comparing the initiation and execution latencies of long versus short action sequences, performed from memory, when sequences switched or repeated across trials. Additionally, each action within the sequences generated predictable perceptual outcomes that were either spatially compatible or spatially incompatible with the action sequences. Results suggested repetition costs (instead of benefits) when performing long sequences. Repetition, as opposed to switching, prolonged initiation and increased the error rate of long compared to short sequences. We attribute these results to the flexible coordination of chunk planning and execution. Repetition may prolong advanced planning of long sequences in order to resolve conflict between multiple chunks, and switching may allow the planning of later chunks to be postponed until execution. We propose that the chunking of action sequences can both facilitate and interfere with action-switching performance.
我们研究了当我们在多个动作序列之间切换时，我们如何灵活地规划动作序列。掌握顺序技能被认为涉及将连续的动作整合到称为块的组中，这些块可以有效地规划和顺利执行。在练习和学习动作与感知结果之间的关联之后，与短动作序列相比，长动作序列在计划效率上的提高表明了分块的作用。当我们在多个动作序列之间切换时，我们如何有效地规划顺序块，这方面的了解较少。当我们切换到不同的动作序列时，我们是否会更有效地规划已学习的块？我们通过比较在试验中切换或重复的记忆中执行的长动作序列与短动作序列的启动和执行潜伏期来检验这个问题。此外，序列中的每个动作都会产生可预测的感知结果，这些结果与动作序列在空间上兼容或不兼容。结果表明，当执行长序列时，重复会产生成本（而不是收益）。与切换相比，重复会延长启动时间，并增加长序列相对于短序列的错误率。我们将这些结果归因于块规划和执行的灵活协调。重复可能会延长长序列的高级计划，以解决多个块之间的冲突，而切换可能会允许推迟计划后续块，直到执行。我们提出，动作序列的分块既可以促进也可以干扰动作切换性能。
