Distinguishing general skill and sequence-specific components in sequence learning: Evidence from task sequence learning and consolidation

The purpose of this study was to test learning and consolidation in implicit task sequence learning (TSL). With TSL, learning a cognitive sequence can be tested without the involvement of a visuo-motor sequence. It is thus especially suited to test the consolidation of learning unconfounded by visual and motor sequence information. We assessed general skill and sequence-specific learning separately, and tested their consolidation by examining performance again after a 24h retention interval containing sleep. The results show that general skill and sequence-specific representations follow a different pattern of consolidation, with an increase in performance for general skill but not for sequence-specific learning after 24h. The study underlines the importance to systematically separate general skill and sequence-specific learning