An Empirical Illustration and Formalization of the Theory of Direct Learning: The Muscle-Based Perception of Kinetic Properties

Abstract

The theory of direct learning portrays learning as specificity between higher order informational quantities, referred to as information for learning, and change in performance that occurs with practice (Jacobs & Michaels, 2007 Jacobs, D. M. and Michaels, C. F. 2007. Direct learning. Ecological Psychology, 19: 321–349. [Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). The focus of the theory is on the lawful generation and possible use of information for learning. This study illustrates and further develops the theory. Participants in the study were asked to judge the mass of unseen handheld objects. In Experiment 1, different participants received feedback on different mechanical properties of the objects, and in Experiment 2, different participants practiced with different sets of objects. The practice led to changes in performance that, in the present portrayal, show up as movements through manifolds. As predicted by the theory, these movements are specific to information for learning, the most precise description of which is obtained with difference equations. A second and more theoretical part of the article provides a tentative formalization of the theory.