title: Role of prior knowledge in implicit and explicit learning of artificial grammars.
abstract: Artificial grammar learning (AGL) performance reflects both implicit and explicit processes and has typically been modeled without incorporating any influence from general world knowledge. Our research provides a systematic investigation of the implicit vs. explicit nature of general knowledge and its interaction with knowledge types investigated by past AGL research (i.e., rule- and similarity-based knowledge). In an AGL experiment, a general knowledge manipulation involved expectations being either congruent or incongruent with training stimulus structure. Inconsistent observations paradoxically led to an advantage in structural knowledge and in the use of general world knowledge in both explicit (conscious) and implicit (unconscious) cases (as assessed by subjective measures). The above findings were obtained under conditions of reduced processing time and impaired executive resources. Key findings from our work are that implicit AGL can clearly be affected by general knowledge, and implicit learning can be enhanced by the violation of expectations.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Ioannina, Greece. Electronic address: eziori@cc.uoi.gr.
authors.forename: Eleni
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ziori
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, City University London, UK.
authors.forename: Emmanuel M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Pothos
authors.affiliation: Sackler Centre for Consciousness Science and School of Psychology, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK.
authors.forename: Zoltán
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Dienes
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D007802:Language; D007858:Learning; D008037:Linguistics; D008962:Models, Theoretical
keywords: AGL; Explicit learning; General knowledge; Implicit learning; Rules; Similarity