Not quite there: skill consolidation in training by doing or observing

Abstract

We tested the notion that action observation engages learning processes and mnemonic representations overlapping with those engaged in actual performance. An identical number of training instances, actual performance, or observation, was afforded on a finger opposition sequence task. Both training modes resulted in immediate gains in performance, as well as in robust delayed, "off-line," gains, indicating post-training consolidation. However, the expression of delayed gains could be blocked by the subsequent performance of a second sequence (post-training interference), but not by its observation. The mnemonic representations of "how-to" knowledge acquired from actual or observed movement may not overlap.[Supplemental material is available for this article.]The observation of action can lead to subsequent specific performance gains, presumably facilitating learning processes (Heyes and Foster 2002;Brown et al. 2003;Torriero et al. 2007;Hayes et al. 2010;Zhang et al. 2011). It is not clear, however, to what degree the beneficial effects of observation reflect a direct recruitment of the motor network involved in actual movement execution; specifically, whether the recruitment of the motor network through putative systems such as the "mirror neuron system," or an "action observation network" (AON) overlaps with the recruitment of the motor network in actual performance (Hari et al. 1998;Buccino et al. 2001;Calvo-Merino et al. 2006;Gazzola and Keysers 2009;Mukamel et al. 2010).This is a pertinent question given that there is increasing evidence that taskspecific changes in the motor cortex constitute an important part of the mnemonic representation of well-trained movement sequences (Karni et al. 1998;Yang et al. 2009Yang et al. , 2014Xu et al. 2010;Gabitov et al. 2014) and that along Hebbian lines, neurons involved in task execution are an integral part of the subsequent mnemonic representation. The AON presumably matches the perceived action with a neural representation within the motor repertoire of the observer. There is evidence, nevertheless, for performance gains even in observing new motor tasks, for which no representation is available in the observer's repertoire (Mattar and Gribble 2005;Stefan et al. 2005;Gatti et al. 2013).The aim of Experiment 1 was to compare the training-related performance gains in two training modes: actual training (Act) and training by observation (Obs) given equal practice on a five-element sequence of opposition movements ( Fig. 2A). Skill acquisition in different brain systems (modalities) is characterized by a distinct time-course (phases) (Karni and Sagi 1991, 1993;Karni 1996;Ari-Even Roth et al. 2005) presumably reflecting a similar repertoire of basic mechanism of plasticity and procedural memory consolidation processes (Karni and Bertini 1997;Dudai 2004;Robertson et al. 2004). Thus, a reasonable expectation would be that the acquisition of motor skills by observation would show phases of learning similar to those known to characterize learning when physical motor training...

Observation of an expert model induces a skilled movement coordination pattern in a single session of intermittent practice

“…This improvement happened very fast during practice: robust gains in performance evolved already within the first 5–10 trials of the first intermittent block of the training session, however, additional slow improvements in coarticulation continued to evolve through five additional practice blocks. No offline delayed gains in performance were observed over the night’s sleep period 34 , 44 , in line with previous studies 10 , 18 . The fast within session improvements in coarticulation ability are likely to be subserved by priming effects 36 , 45 .…”

“…Altogether, our results, in line with 34 , 58 , 59 , suggest that although practice by observation of an expert’s movements is a very effective learning experience, - it saves extensive training to reach the concept of co-articulation of movement components, the resultant procedural knowledge is qualitatively different from the knowledge (skill) created by multi-session physical practice.…”

“…Additionally, it is not known what are the costs of the observation-based gains in performance (e.g., speed-accuracy trade-off) when observation trials partially substitute physical practice? Here, we combined observation and physical practice during training, to avoid the differences observed when solely observation is used 34 . In ecological settings of training, it is a common situation to have intermittent practice, where actual performance is supported or guided by demonstration.…”

The Effects of Instruction Manipulation on Motor Performance Following Action Observation

“…In the two relevant studies mentioned above (Bek et al, 2016;Di Rienzo et al, 2019), only the immediate effects were investigated. Whereas AO was found to trigger consolidation processes that lead to a stabilization of the new motor skill and off-line gains (Trempe et al, 2011;Hesseg et al, 2016), the delayed retest effects as a function of instruction manipulation (relating to attention and MI during AO) is yet to be elucidated. In addition, although Bek et al (2016) andDi Rienzo et al (2019) studied the effects of AO+Attention or AO+MI, they did not investigate the combined effect of AO+Attention+MI.…”

Exposure to Sleep, Rest, or Exercise Impacts Skill Memory Consolidation but so Too Can a Challenging Practice Schedule

“…This may be an especially important message on a practical level as traditionally exclusive emphasis is placed on the training or rehabilitation session itself when contemplating “best-practice.” Moreover, new findings from studies addressing the contribution of sleep and exercise to offline gains in skill continue to help refine the initial mechanistic accounts of procedural skill consolidation at this time focused on the role of circuits involving M1 ( King et al, 2017 ; Robertson and Takacs, 2017 ; Mirdamadi and Block, 2020 ). Despite these advances, the present discussion reminds us that increasing our awareness of how practice is organized, may not be such a bad thing, as it too, can foster consolidation of skill memory not afforded by other practice schedules ( Wright et al, 2016 ; also see Hesseg et al, 2016 ).…”