A meta-analysis of contextual interference effect on learning of discrete and continuous motor task with different and same generalized motor programs

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of contextual interference on learning discrete and continuous motor tasks with the same and different generalized motor programs, with the meta-analysis approach. studies as an electronic search and manual search (in reservoirs thesis of University of Tehran, Shahid Beheshti University, Tarbiat Moalem Tehran and Shahid Chamran Ahvaz) were collected. In present study, 18 studies were selected for analysis. Experiments conducted in these studies were divided into four categories based on task type: a) experiments with discrete tasks with same generalized motor programs, b) experiments with discrete tasks with different generalized motor programs, c) experiments with continuous tasks with same generalized motor programs and d) experiments with continuous tasks with different generalized motor programs. The results of this meta-analysis showed that contextual interference had devastative effects on performance in the acquisition phase in all four experiment categories. But contextual interference was created better performance in retention phase in all four experiment categories. The contextual interference had beneficial effects in experiments with discrete tasks with different generalized motor program and continuous tasks with same generalized motor program. In transfer phase, contextual interference had not been created significance effect on performance in experiments with discrete tasks with same generalized motor program and created devastative effect on performance in experiment with continuous tasks with different generalized motor program. Results revealed that the contextual interference effects are different in continuous and discrete tasks with different and same generalized motor programs.