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Implicit learning


Implicit learning is the learning of complex information in an incidental manner, without awareness of what has been learned. According to Frensch and Rünger (2003) the general definition of implicit learning is still subject to some controversy, although the topic has had some significant developments since the 1960s. Implicit learning may require a certain minimal amount of attention and may depend on attentional and working memory mechanisms. The result of implicit learning is implicit knowledge in the form of abstract (but possibly instantiated) representations rather than verbatim or aggregate representations, and scholars have drawn similarities between implicit learning and implicit memory.

Examples from daily life, like learning how to ride a bicycle or how to swim, are cited as demonstrations of the nature of implicit learning and its mechanism. It has been claimed that implicit learning differs from explicit learning by the absence of consciously accessible knowledge. Evidence supports a clear distinction between implicit and explicit learning; for instance, research on amnesia often shows intact implicit learning but impaired explicit learning. Another difference is that brain areas involved in working memory and attention are often more active during explicit than implicit learning.

The definition of the concept of implicit learning is still developing and subject to controversy. Despite a considerable number of studies on the topic, there is no agreement on a single definition. Due to such large differences in the understanding of implicit learning, some scientists even argue that the concept does not exist.

Some definitions among dozens:

The definitions of implicit learning typically concentrate on the process of acquisition, the knowledge gained and/or the process used for retrieval.

Pioneer work in implicit learning started as early as 1885 with Ebbinghaus's Über das Gedächtnis which touched on learning and memory.

In 1967, George Miller began Project Grammarama at Harvard University. The study was conducted to understand rule-learning. In the experiment participants were given a string with an underlying finite-state grammar to memorize and then were asked to recognize other strings that followed the same grammar. The participants were unaware of the underlying grammar in the memorization stage. The experiment showed that the subjects were better able to memorize strings that followed the rules of the grammar than the strings that did not. Miller coined the term pattern conception to indicate the ability to generalize rules from one observation to another fairly consistent observation. Miller's work was the cornerstone for what is now the most widely studied paradigm of implicit learning: artificial grammar learning.


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