Abstract
Visuomotor sequence learning was assessed in 4- to 10-year-old children using a serial reaction time (SRT) task with both random and sequenced trials. One-half of the children received exposure to the sequence prior to performing the reaction time (RT) task. In Experiment 1, 7- and 10-year-old children demonstrated sequence-specific decreases in RT. As in the adult SRT literature, participants with explicit awareness of the sequence at the end of the session showed larger sequence-specific reaction time decrements than those without explicit awareness. Contrary to expectation, preexposure to the sequence did not reliably predict the level of awareness attained. Results from Experiment 2 indicate that 4-year-olds also demonstrate significant sequence learning on a variant of the SRT task. This article provides preliminary data regarding developmental changes in sequential learning and the development and use of implicit and explicit knowledge. Age-related differences emerged primarily in explicit rather than implicit knowledge.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 364-387 |
Number of pages | 24 |
Journal | Journal of Experimental Child Psychology |
Volume | 79 |
Issue number | 4 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Aug 2001 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Children's learning
- Explicit
- Implicit
- Motor skill learning
- SRT
- Serial reaction time