Implicit learning and development

The present study evaluated Reber's (1992) claim that compared to explicit learning (EL), implicit learning (IL) will be less affected by development. Sixty subjects, 20 in each of 3 age groups (2nd-grade, 6th-grade, and college), were measured on explicit and implicit tasks. The Analysis-Synthesis subtest of the Woodcock-Johnson Psycho-Educational Battery-Revised (1989) was used to measure EL. A modified version of the Serial Reaction Time task developed by Nissen and Bullemer (1987) was used to measure IL. Results showed that while performance on the explicit task increased with grade, performance on the implicit task, as predicted, showed no significant differences across different grades. These results support Reber's claim of the relative age-independence of IL. Furthermore, subjects' performances on EL and IL tasks were uncorrelated, suggesting that EL and IL abilities may reflect different cognitive systems. These findings provide indirect support for Reber's theory that implicit and explicit cognitive systems can be differentiated by the period of evolution in which they are thought to have emerged.