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Retrieving and applying knowledge to different examples promotes transfer of learning.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Butler, AC; Black-Maier, AC; Raley, ND; Marsh, EJ
Published in: Journal of experimental psychology. Applied
December 2017

Introducing variability during learning often facilitates transfer to new contexts (i.e., generalization). The goal of the present study was to explore the concept of variability in an area of research where its effects have received little attention: learning through retrieval practice. In four experiments, we investigated whether retrieval practice with different examples of a concept promotes greater transfer than repeated retrieval practice with the same example. Participants watched video clips from a lecture about geological science and answered application questions about concepts: either the same question three times or three different questions. Experiments 3 and 4 also included conditions that involved repeatedly studying the information in the application questions (either the same example or three different examples). Two days later, participants took a final test with new application questions. All four experiments showed that variability during retrieval practice produced superior transfer of knowledge to new examples. Experiments 3 and 4 also showed a testing effect and a benefit from studying different examples. Overall, these findings suggest that repeatedly retrieving and applying knowledge to different examples is a powerful method for acquiring knowledge that will transfer to a variety of new contexts. (PsycINFO Database Record

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Published In

Journal of experimental psychology. Applied

DOI

EISSN

1939-2192

ISSN

1076-898X

Publication Date

December 2017

Volume

23

Issue

4

Start / End Page

433 / 446

Related Subject Headings

  • Transfer, Psychology
  • Practice, Psychological
  • Mental Recall
  • Knowledge
  • Humans
  • Experimental Psychology
  • Educational Measurement
  • 5205 Social and personality psychology
  • 5204 Cognitive and computational psychology
  • 5201 Applied and developmental psychology
 

Citation

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Butler, A. C., Black-Maier, A. C., Raley, N. D., & Marsh, E. J. (2017). Retrieving and applying knowledge to different examples promotes transfer of learning. Journal of Experimental Psychology. Applied, 23(4), 433–446. https://doi.org/10.1037/xap0000142
Butler, Andrew C., Allison C. Black-Maier, Nathaniel D. Raley, and Elizabeth J. Marsh. “Retrieving and applying knowledge to different examples promotes transfer of learning.Journal of Experimental Psychology. Applied 23, no. 4 (December 2017): 433–46. https://doi.org/10.1037/xap0000142.
Butler AC, Black-Maier AC, Raley ND, Marsh EJ. Retrieving and applying knowledge to different examples promotes transfer of learning. Journal of experimental psychology Applied. 2017 Dec;23(4):433–46.
Butler, Andrew C., et al. “Retrieving and applying knowledge to different examples promotes transfer of learning.Journal of Experimental Psychology. Applied, vol. 23, no. 4, Dec. 2017, pp. 433–46. Epmc, doi:10.1037/xap0000142.
Butler AC, Black-Maier AC, Raley ND, Marsh EJ. Retrieving and applying knowledge to different examples promotes transfer of learning. Journal of experimental psychology Applied. 2017 Dec;23(4):433–446.

Published In

Journal of experimental psychology. Applied

DOI

EISSN

1939-2192

ISSN

1076-898X

Publication Date

December 2017

Volume

23

Issue

4

Start / End Page

433 / 446

Related Subject Headings

  • Transfer, Psychology
  • Practice, Psychological
  • Mental Recall
  • Knowledge
  • Humans
  • Experimental Psychology
  • Educational Measurement
  • 5205 Social and personality psychology
  • 5204 Cognitive and computational psychology
  • 5201 Applied and developmental psychology