In Pursuit of Perceptions: Priming Intervention during a Goal-Directed Behavioral Task

Learning to effectively execute goal-directed tasks generally requires guidance from knowledgeable experts that can direct the performer’s attention toward important environmental features. However, specifying the optimal attentional strategies is difficult due to the subjective nature of perceptions and the complexity of the underlying neural processes. The current skill acquisition literature emphasizes action-based contingencies through Predictive and Ecological models when examining attentional processes, while Perceptual Control Theory advocates for perceptual-based mechanisms. To evaluate the efficacy of these models, this study implicitly primed one hundred fifteen participants to focus on action-based or perceptual-based aspects during an interceptive task. It was predicted that the perceptual-based priming condition would result in faster learning and greater resilience to environmental disturbances. However, the highly variable results did not show significant differences in learning rate or resilience between the action and perceptual-based conditions. Ultimately, the variability in the findings suggests that a superior performance depends on numerous factors unique to each performer. Consequently, instructional methods cannot rely on a single optimal attentional strategy for gathering environmental information. Instead, the dynamic interplay between the individual and the environment must be considered to foster the skill development of novice performers.