Long-term adaptation to change in implicit contextual learning

Abstract

The visual world consists of spatial regularities that are acquired through experience in order to guide attentional orienting. For instance, in visual search, detection of a target is faster when a layout of nontarget items is encountered repeatedly, suggesting that learned contextual associations can guide attention (contextual cuing). However, scene layouts sometimes change, requiring observers to adapt previous memory representations. Here, we investigated the long-term dynamics of contextual adaptation after a permanent change of the target location. We observed fast and reliable learning of initial context-target associations after just three repetitions. However, adaptation of acquired contextual representations to relocated targets was slow and effortful, requiring 3 days of training with overall 80 repetitions. A final test 1 week later revealed equivalent effects of contextual cuing for both target locations, and these were comparable to the effects observed on day 1. That is, observers learned both initial target locations and relocated targets, given extensive training combined with extended periods of consolidation. Thus, while implicit contextual learning efficiently extracts statistical regularities of our environment at first, it is rather insensitive to change in the longer term, especially when subtle changes in context-target associations need to be acquired.

Local item density modulates adaptation of learned contextual cues

“…The purpose of Experiment 1 was to show, in the first instance, that with our stimuli we can actually replicate previous findings showing a general lack of adaptation in contextual cueing to relocated targets (e.g., Zellin et al, 2014).…”

“…Further, they appear to be at odds with Zellin et al (2014), who found adaptation of contextual cueing only after massive amounts of training with the 'relocated' displays. However, Zellin et al did not control for local item density -a manipulation that was central to the current experiments.…”

“…1 for an illustration of the basic procedure). The main findings were that (i) contextual cueing was substantially reduced immediately after the target location change; and (ii) the effect recovered only with massive amounts of training on the changed displays (see Zellin et al, 2014, who had their observers perform 3.600 trials on the changed displays across several days, with contextual cueing recovering only after some 1500 trials following the presentation of the "relocated" displays). -It should be noted that the problem to re-instantiate contextual cueing after a change of the target location is unlikely to result from limitations in memory capacity.…”

Investigating implicit statistical learning mechanisms through contextual cueing

“…19,No. 9 delays lasting weeks [21][22][23] and strongly resists retroactive interference [22,23]. CC is not confined to humans because similar CC effects have been reported in baboons [21] and pigeons [24].…”

“…Consequently, a search task that includes much fewer trials within each block triggers larger CC effects [112]. Congruently, the acquisition of a new set of old displays is strongly impeded by proactive interference, and requires intensive training or a nap to take place [15,23]. Interestingly, sleep has been shown to reduce proactive inference only for the contexts that are not available in recognition task [15].…”