PSYC4191 Human Performance Week 1 Questions (Expertise Pt. 1)

Who is Steve Faloon and what feat did he manage?

Steve Faloon was a psychology undergrad student of Ericsson, who managed to surpass what was previously believed to be the memory limit for recalling a list of random numbers (7 or 8), by memorising 82 digits.

List seven examples of skills that people are now considered much better at than they were a few decades ago, according to Ericsson & Pool (2016).

hotdog eating, running, memory, diving, violin, typing, cycling, maths, basketball

In Ericsson’s view, what is the key attribute of the human brain that means that we can keep on breaking world records?

Neuroplasticity allows for the kind of adaptability required to continue breaking records.

What is perfect pitch and why is it a good demonstration of the power of neuroplasticity?

Perfect pitch is the ability to identify a musical note without any reference point other than hearing it. Perfect pitch demonstrates the power of neuroplasticity as this was believed to be an untrainable skill (could only be innate), however a study by Sakakibara proved that int he right conditions, young people can be trained to develop perfect pitch.

What study did Sakakibara (2014) conduct involving absolute pitch (participants, methods, results, conclusions)?

Participants: 2 - 6 year old students at a music school. Methods: Initial testing for perfect pitch, followed by progressive training in short intervals several times a day, followed by re-testing, with training progressing based on results of testing. Results: All students achieved perfect pitch, developing it in 58 weeks on average, for a maximum of 94 weeks. Conclusions: perfect pitch is in fact trainable, not untrainable and only innate as previously believed.

What did top basketball player Ray Allen argue was the secret of his success?

Practicing more than his teammates, rather than any natural ability.

According to Ericsson & Ward (2007), what’s the trajectory of medical expertise across years of practice?

Doctors’ performance tends to continue to improve over the first two years after graduation, then plateaus.

What evidence is there regarding the relationship between experience and expertise?

Evidence from doctors’ expertise shows that despite gaining additional experience over their career, their performance tends to plateau after 2 years of leaving medical school.

What is “naïve practice”, according to Ericsson?

Just performing the skill repeatedly without additional challenge that leads to improvement.

How effective is re-reading lecture notes as a way of learning content, according to learning research?

Very ineffective. The least effective way to learn.

What are the principles behind “purposeful practice”, according to Ericsson & Pool (2016)?

GFTPF

Goal setting: turning main goal into component sub-goals (which are specific, e.g. running 2 seconds faster each time)

Feedback: need a good feedback system, both external and internal. Feedback important for motivation.

Time: need to set aside adequate time to practice

Push beyond comfort zone: identify areas for growth rather than just working in current competency. Staying in competency comfort zone won’t lead to improvement.

Focus: give adequate attention to task while practicing.

What were Ericsson’s ideas about how to break through plateaus in improvement, taken from his observation of Steve Faloon?

Ericsson said: don’t just push yourself harder, instead try new strategies/approaches. Faloon did this. When he hit a plateau, he tried a new strategy.

According to Ericsson, what’s homeostasis got to do with skill acquisition?

The brain is designed towards homeostasis. By pushing beyond the familiar/comfort zone, we trigger the brain to adjust to this new benchmark, triggering neuroplasticity to create new connections, creating learning/adaption.

What implications does Ericsson’s skill homeostasis idea have for how we should practice a skill?

Practice should aim to work on weaker areas, rather than just re-treading strengths. Should try and work on at the threshold of what someone is capable of, pushing that threshold further up bit by bit. Don’t stretch yourself too much or the brain won’t adapt and you won’t learn, but don’t just do naive practice in the comfort zone.

Describe the brain-imaging study did Elbert et al. (1995) conduct demonstrating neuroplasticity in string players.

The part of the brain that controlled finger movement for playing the violin (left hand finger control in right handed players) was larger compared to non-players. The finger region had occupied some of the region that controlled the palm.

What evidence regarding the human cerebellum has been found regarding the concept of neuroplasticity and practice?

Keyboard players have been found to have larger cerebellums (controls movement), and size has been found to be correlated with hours of practice.

What evidence regarding grey matter in the brain has been found regarding the concept of neuroplasticity and practice?

Grey matter in the brain has been found to be larger for musicians for the parts of the brain that are related to playing instruments (sensory input from hands, movement planning)

What experimental evidence is there for skill-based training leading to changes in brain anatomy (participants, methods, results, conclusions)?

Rats who were randomly assigned to an acrobatics training condition (compared to rats randomly assigned to a general exercise control condition) showed changes in their cerebellum. Participants: rats. Methods: random assignment to acrobatics training condition with balancing, and co-ordination through obstacle course. Results: acrobatics rats showed cerebellum changes. Conclusions: the training course assignment led to cerebellum changes, therefore skill based training can lead to changes in brain anatomy.

What evidence is there for neuroplasticity in mathematicians?

Mathematicians were found to have greater grey matter volume in parts of the brain related to conducting mathematics after more practicing maths.

According to Ericsson, what is a key reason current world memory champions are far superior to Steve Faloon’s 1970s record?

They have “stood on the shoulders of giants” as it were by incorporating and building on the strategies used by previous memory champions.

According to Ericsson & Pool (2016), what’s the important element that missing from “purposeful practice” strategies?

Experts who have studied the skill in question for many years and can provide expertise on the best way to learn the skill.

Contrast purposeful and deliberate practice (as defined by Ericsson & Poole, 2016).

Deliberate practice is purposeful practice, with the added element of experts who have determined the best way to practice it.

Describe the six elements of deliberate practice (based on Ericsson & Pool, 2016).

1. Experts who have determined the most effective way to practice the skill (the components of the skill, and the order to learn them in)

2. A specific plan for achieving increasingly difficult goals, improving incrementally

3. To always practice just outside of the comfort zone

4. To always give full attention to practice while practicing

5. To use a good system of performance feedback to know how you are doing

6. Recruiting a good teacher to help develop the plan and provide the feedback

What study did Ericsson et al (1993) conduct to investigate deliberate practice in violinists (participants, methods, results, main conclusions)? (make sure to include all four participant groups listed here)

Participants: top level violinists, best violinists at an academy (on their way to be top), decent violinists at the academy, and music teachers.

Methods: Interviewed participants, asked them to keep a diary of their practice week by week.

Results: Positive correlation between quality of violinist and time spent in deliberate practice (across whole time playing violin)

Conclusion: Amount of time spent in deliberate practice accounts for all variance in high level performance, with innate influences (e.g. biological advantages) being exception not rule.