ract structure of sequence elements. Surface structure refers to the order of the elements in a series and abstract structure addresses the type of relationship between different categories of repeating elements. For instance, sequences ABCBAC and DEFEDF have different surface structures, but the same abstract structureù123213. In the Explicit group, the subjects were presented with a diagram showing the abstract structure and informed that this structure would help them in the performance of the following task. As for the Implicit group, they were simply instructed to perform the task as quickly as possible. The task involved the identification of the appropriate element in a sequential order through exposure to repeated trials. Therefore, the reaction times should decrease with increasing number of trials. The findings of this study indicated that while both subjects in the Explicit and Implicit Groups were able to learn the surface structure, only the Explicit Group was able to transfer their learning to the abstract structure of the series.
However, the differences between implicit learning and perceptual learning are not easy to investigate and analyze. As defined by Goldstone (1998), perceptual learning refers to the adaptation of the perceptual system, which leads to an improved response to environmental stimuli. More specifically, the four mechanisms of perceptual learning were identified:
Weighting: Weighting describes how perception is honed by repeated exposure to attend to specific dimensions and features (Goldstone, 1998). In a study of the weighting mechanism, Repp and Liberman (1987) found that subjects were better able to detect sound differences that cross the phonemic boundary in their native language than those who spoke a native language in which the sound difference did not cross the phonemic boundary.
Imprinting: In the case of imprinting, receptors in the perceptual system are develop...