It’s Hard to Prepare for Task Novelty: Cueing the Novelty of Upcoming Tasks Does Not Facilitate Task Performance
Rapidly learning new tasks, such as using new technology or playing a new game, is ubiquitous in our daily lives. Previous studies suggest that our brain relies on different networks for rapid task learning versus retrieving known tasks from memory, and behavioral studies have shown that novel versu...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Ubiquity Press
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Journal of Cognition |
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| Online Access: | https://account.journalofcognition.org/index.php/up-j-jc/article/view/423 |
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| _version_ | 1823859318159572992 |
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| author | Mengqiao Chai Ana F. Palenciano Ravi Mill Michael W. Cole Senne Braem |
| author_facet | Mengqiao Chai Ana F. Palenciano Ravi Mill Michael W. Cole Senne Braem |
| author_sort | Mengqiao Chai |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Rapidly learning new tasks, such as using new technology or playing a new game, is ubiquitous in our daily lives. Previous studies suggest that our brain relies on different networks for rapid task learning versus retrieving known tasks from memory, and behavioral studies have shown that novel versus practiced tasks may rely on different task configuration processes. Here, we investigated whether explicitly informing about the novelty of an incoming task would help participants prepare for different task configuration processes, such as pre-adjusting working memory gating functions. We hypothesized that if different task configuration processes can be prepared for, a pre-cue informing about the novelty of the upcoming task should lead to better task performance. Across four experiments, participants were first trained on a subset of tasks, followed by a test session in which pre-cues were provided in some blocks but not others. After comparing task performance between cued and uncued blocks, our results provided no evidence supporting the benefit of cueing for both practiced and novel tasks, suggesting that people cannot prepare for different task configuration processes in the absence of concrete task information. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-4e93832d426d46798af85ff0d9340beb |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2514-4820 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Ubiquity Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Cognition |
| spelling | doaj-art-4e93832d426d46798af85ff0d9340beb2025-02-11T05:36:32ZengUbiquity PressJournal of Cognition2514-48202025-01-0181171710.5334/joc.423422It’s Hard to Prepare for Task Novelty: Cueing the Novelty of Upcoming Tasks Does Not Facilitate Task PerformanceMengqiao Chai0https://orcid.org/0009-0004-9756-7421Ana F. Palenciano1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9963-7524Ravi Mill2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9249-8744Michael W. Cole3https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4329-438XSenne Braem4https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2619-8225Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, Henri Dunantlaan 2, 9000 GhentMind, Brain, and Behavior Research Center, University of Granada, 18011, GranadaCenter for Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ, 07102Center for Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ, 07102Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, Henri Dunantlaan 2, 9000 GhentRapidly learning new tasks, such as using new technology or playing a new game, is ubiquitous in our daily lives. Previous studies suggest that our brain relies on different networks for rapid task learning versus retrieving known tasks from memory, and behavioral studies have shown that novel versus practiced tasks may rely on different task configuration processes. Here, we investigated whether explicitly informing about the novelty of an incoming task would help participants prepare for different task configuration processes, such as pre-adjusting working memory gating functions. We hypothesized that if different task configuration processes can be prepared for, a pre-cue informing about the novelty of the upcoming task should lead to better task performance. Across four experiments, participants were first trained on a subset of tasks, followed by a test session in which pre-cues were provided in some blocks but not others. After comparing task performance between cued and uncued blocks, our results provided no evidence supporting the benefit of cueing for both practiced and novel tasks, suggesting that people cannot prepare for different task configuration processes in the absence of concrete task information.https://account.journalofcognition.org/index.php/up-j-jc/article/view/423cognitive controldecision makingexecutive functionslearning |
| spellingShingle | Mengqiao Chai Ana F. Palenciano Ravi Mill Michael W. Cole Senne Braem It’s Hard to Prepare for Task Novelty: Cueing the Novelty of Upcoming Tasks Does Not Facilitate Task Performance Journal of Cognition cognitive control decision making executive functions learning |
| title | It’s Hard to Prepare for Task Novelty: Cueing the Novelty of Upcoming Tasks Does Not Facilitate Task Performance |
| title_full | It’s Hard to Prepare for Task Novelty: Cueing the Novelty of Upcoming Tasks Does Not Facilitate Task Performance |
| title_fullStr | It’s Hard to Prepare for Task Novelty: Cueing the Novelty of Upcoming Tasks Does Not Facilitate Task Performance |
| title_full_unstemmed | It’s Hard to Prepare for Task Novelty: Cueing the Novelty of Upcoming Tasks Does Not Facilitate Task Performance |
| title_short | It’s Hard to Prepare for Task Novelty: Cueing the Novelty of Upcoming Tasks Does Not Facilitate Task Performance |
| title_sort | it s hard to prepare for task novelty cueing the novelty of upcoming tasks does not facilitate task performance |
| topic | cognitive control decision making executive functions learning |
| url | https://account.journalofcognition.org/index.php/up-j-jc/article/view/423 |
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