Functions and Mechanisms of Perceptual Learning

Perceptual learning – the improvement of performance through practice or training – has been observed over a wide range of perceptual tasks in adult humans. The high degree of plasticity of the adult perceptual systems suggests that perception and perceptual learning cannot be studied separately. In this talk, we will review some major functions and mechanisms of perceptual learning, including specificity of perceptual leaning, the law of practice in perceptual learning, mechanisms of perceptual learning, the level and mode of perceptual learning, optimal training procedures, and computational models of perceptual learning. Studies of these various aspects of perceptual learning have greatly enhanced our understanding the information processing limitations of the human observer, and how the state of the observer changes with training, with strong implications for the development of potential noninvasive training methods for perceptual expertise in normal populations and for the amelioration of deficits in challenged populations.