The variability of practice hypothesis in motor learning: Does it apply to Alzheimer's disease?

Based on Schmidt's ( 1975) variability of practice hypothesis, this study examined acquisition and transfer of a gross motor skill, namely tossing, in 58 patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and 58 healthy older adults under constant, blocked, and random practice conditions. While healthy older adults were able to learn the tossing task equally well under the three practice conditions, only AD patients receiving constant practice showed significant improvements. Tests of intermediate transfer yielded the expected random practice advantage in healthy controls but not AT) patients. None of the practice conditions facilitated intermediate transfer in AD patients; however, constant practice did benefit these impaired individuals on tests of near transfer. These results indicate that the variability of practice hypothesis does not extend to AD patients. As motor learning and transfer were clearly a function of constant practice, future attempts to retrain basic activities of daily living in AD patients should emphasize consistency in training, (C) 2000 Academic Press.

基于施密特（1975）的练习变异性假说，本研究在恒定练习、区组练习和随机练习条件下，对58名阿尔茨海默病（AD）患者和58名健康老年人的一项大肌肉运动技能（即投掷）的习得和迁移进行了检测。健康老年人在三种练习条件下都能同样很好地学习投掷任务，而只有接受恒定练习的AD患者有显著进步。中间迁移测试在健康对照组中产生了预期的随机练习优势，但在AD患者中没有。任何练习条件都没有促进AD患者的中间迁移；然而，恒定练习确实在近迁移测试中对这些有障碍的个体有益。这些结果表明，练习变异性假说并不适用于AD患者。由于运动学习和迁移显然是恒定练习的函数，未来对AD患者重新训练日常生活基本活动的尝试应强调训练的一致性。（C）2000学术出版社