Realization of an effective spaced learning schedule based on a reactivation theory of the spacing effect

Abstract

This study aims at predicting the most effective spaced learning schedule based on a reactivation theory and to prove its effectiveness. The reactivation theory assumes that the activation decay of memory within spaces leads to increased reactivation at succeeding presentation, which causes the spacing effect. In Experiment 1, reactivation was measured using a repetition priming paradigm to find that the space with the greatest reactivation expanded as presentation times increased. Experiment 2 showed that no other condition yielded a spacing effect greater than the expanding spaced learning schedule with the greatest reactivation at each presentation. It was also suggested that the expansion of the space with the greatest reactivation was not caused by increase in presentation time but by the previous reactivation. In Experiment 3, the above possibility was confirmed through a repetition priming paradigm. All of these results not only supported the reactivation theory but also gave us a foundation on which to construct a more effective spaced learning schedule.