Han Linzhu, Xie Weiye, Li Peijuan, Seger Carol A, Liu Zhiya
Center for the Study of Applied Psychology, Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science of Guangdong Province, School of Psychology, South China Normal University, 55 Zhongshan Avenue West, Guangzhou, 510631, P. R. China.
Department of Psychology and Program in Molecular, Cellular, and Integrative Neurosciences, Colorado State University, 1876 Campus Delivery, Fort Collins, CO, 80523, USA.
Mem Cognit. 2025 Jan 20. doi: 10.3758/s13421-025-01682-4.
Category learning is usually better supported by interleaved training (alternating between exemplars from different categories) than by blocked training (studying all exemplars within a category sequentially), yet when asked to choose between the two strategies most people endorse blocking as superior. We used a prototype category-learning task to examine the effects of between- and within-category similarity and knowledge of the number of stimuli to be studied on study sequencing choices during self-regulated learning. Across three experiments (including a complete replication), participants who viewed the number of stimuli in each category showed more interleaving in comparison with those who did not, indicating that participants adjusted their strategy based on the projected length of the study phase. Participants informed about the number of stimuli also showed greater interleaving when within-category similarity was high and greater blocking when within-category similarity was low; this difference was not found when participants were not told the number of stimuli to be studied. Between-category similarity did not affect degree of blocking versus interleaving. Overall, interleaving decreased over training and blocking increased. Most participants endorsed hybrid strategies in which blocking was combined with at least some interleaving on a metacognitive questionnaire, but when forced to choose between exclusive blocking and exclusive interleaving, the majority endorsed blocking. These results indicate that participants are sensitive to category structure and expectations about task length when choosing stimuli to study during self-regulated learning, and adjust their strategy across the time course of study.
类别学习通常在交错训练（在不同类别的示例之间交替）下比在集中训练（按顺序学习同一类别的所有示例）下得到更好的支持，然而当被要求在这两种策略之间做出选择时，大多数人认为集中训练更优。我们使用了一个原型类别学习任务来研究类别间和类别内相似性以及对要学习的刺激数量的了解对自我调节学习过程中学习顺序选择的影响。在三个实验（包括一次完整的重复实验）中，与那些不知道每个类别中刺激数量的参与者相比，知道每个类别中刺激数量的参与者表现出更多的交错学习，这表明参与者根据学习阶段的预计时长调整了他们的策略。当类别内相似性高时，知道刺激数量的参与者也表现出更多的交错学习，而当类别内相似性低时，则表现出更多的集中学习；当参与者不知道要学习的刺激数量时，没有发现这种差异。类别间相似性并未影响集中学习与交错学习的程度。总体而言，交错学习在训练过程中减少，集中学习增加。在一份元认知问卷中，大多数参与者认可将集中学习与至少一些交错学习相结合的混合策略，但当被迫在完全集中学习和完全交错学习之间做出选择时，大多数人认可集中学习。这些结果表明，在自我调节学习中选择要学习的刺激时，参与者对类别结构和对任务时长的预期很敏感，并在学习过程中调整他们的策略。
