Learning to learn (LTL) in an associative learning task with humans

Abstract

Three experiments examined LTL in a human conditioning paradigm. Compared to controls, without prior conditioning or extinction, phase-1 conditioning of A facilitated phase-2 conditioning with B. Though seldom observed in the literature, phase-3 extinction with A facilitated phase-4 extinction of B. The effects, appearing after one trial, depended on separate representations of the conditioning and extinction experiences, not on physical generalization, intermixing A and B trials, nor on the strength of the A-evoked US representation