Variations in knowledge of component performance and its effects upon part-part and part-whole relations.

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Abstract
This study was concerned with determining techniques for rearranging the rank orders and altering the magnitudes of part proficiencies within a 4-part, compensatory-pursuit task. Such techniques serve 2 purposes: (a) as aids in specifying part-part and part-whole relations or composition rules, and (b) as potential methods for rapidly improving the criterion scores of skilled subjects (Ss). Two variables, instructions and knowledge of results, were used over a period of 24 days to alter S''s pattern of attending to the 4 aspects of the task. Results indicated that these variables do lead to redistributions of part proficiencies and have very predictable effects upon criterion scores. In the present data the improvement in one part was accompanied by a loss or losses in other parts such that proficiency at doing 4 parts simultaneously tended to fall slightly. It was suggested that these and other processes can be studied to advantage by means of the multiplication of individual component proportions of time on target. The data failed to reveal day-by-day differences between 3 knowledge of results procedures, which identified the worst component, a component selected at random and represented to S as worst, and no component at all. Since these procedures gave differential results at the trial level and no differences for aggregates of trials, it was suggested that they had momentary cue value as opposed to learning effects.
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