Watch and Learn: Mapping the Behavioural and Neural Profile of Observational Learning Throughout the Lifespan

As humans, our ability to survive within a social world is facilitated by learning through observing others. As such, when learning tasks as simple as tying one's shoes or as complex as performing heart surgery, we learn by watching from childhood through to old age. Many researchers from the behavioural and brain sciences suggest that observational and physical learning share common features. What remains unknown is how our brains and behaviour change when learning by observation across the lifespan, as well as how age impacts the efficacy of observational learning. To address these questions, I measure the impact of observational learning on behaviour and brain activity among children, young adults, and older adults. The ultimate aim is to develop a means of identifying factors associated with observational learning success, which in turn will inform observation-based interventions used in education and therapeutic contexts.

What will the 'Watch and Learn' project contribute to our knowledge?
Questions concerning how we learn by observation attract attention from researchers and practitioners ranging from education to psychology to medicine. However, it has not yet been possible to directly compare how the brain and behaviour are impacted by observational compared to physical learning. This is due to limitations in traditional cognitive neuroscience approaches that lack the sensitivity and sophistication required to detect subtle differences in how the brain represents new information learned by observation or physical practice. Only through the innovative combination of advanced neuroscientific techniques with behavioural training procedures targeting different age groups is it possible to (1) definitively address how observational learning impacts the brain and behaviour throughout the lifespan and (2) explore possibilities for detecting the efficacy of observational learning on an individual basis.

How will the 'Watch and Learn' project illuminate how we learn by observation throughout our lives?
The project comprises 3 studies, each using the same procedures with a different age group (S1-young adults, S2-children, S3-older adults). Each study features a training part and a part that evaluates individual predictors of observational learning success. In Part 1, participants learn simple dance sequences by physical practice or observation. Performance is measured daily and participants' brain activity is measured at 3 points in the training process. Through the innovative application of multivariate analyses, I will measure how the brain represents information learned by observation vs physical practice. The results will inform a new model of how both kinds of learning impact the brain and behaviour at different life stages. In Part 2 of each study, I re-evaluate individual participants' brain and behavioural data, aiming to identify at an early learning stage who is likely to benefit most from observation. This novel approach represents the first attempt to consider all aspects of a person's rich and complex learning data to better understand and predict how each individual may respond to observational training.

What are the implications of this research? Who benefits?
The most direct implication of the 'Watch and Learn' project is a better understanding of how we transform visual information into physical skills from childhood to advanced age. More broadly, those who teach or rehabilitate motor skills stand to benefit from the project's findings through an improved understanding of how observational learning compares to physical learning in terms of behavioural performance and the speed and efficacy with which individuals of different ages may be expected to learn by observation. Outreach and knowledge exchange activities are targeted at the public as well as educators who teach physical skills in schools and hospitals, with the aim to optimize observational approaches based on the results of this project.

The 'Watch and Learn' project stands to benefit a wide sample of society beyond academia via at least four distinct avenues:
1. Influencing Behaviour & Informing Interventions: Because we vary in how we learn best, one-size-fits-all teaching strategies frequently fail due to individual differences in learning abilities. Social science research is critical for understanding how we learn, and yet, most work measures behaviour among a group of individuals and then generalizes to the wider population. My project takes an important step forward in understanding individual learning differences at behavioural and brain levels. Findings will inform how to identify those who learn effectively by observation, as well as how the profile of observational learning changes during the lifespan. Planned outreach activities through schools and national/international science festivals will enable me to communicate my findings on individual differences, as well as engage in dialogue with educators who use observational learning.
2. Using Technology to Understand Behaviour: Recent exciting technological developments have been made in video game equipment. The 'Watch and Learn' project takes advantage of the wireless motion tracking technology offered by the Xbox Kinect system (made by Microsoft) to quantify and track physical and observational learning in individuals ranging from pre-adolescence through to old age. Microsoft is interested in liaising with basic science researchers who use the Kinect technology in innovative ways to understand or change human behavior. As the project develops, I will discuss my findings, learn how to better optimize the Kinect system for my research needs, and engage Microsoft in discussions about how their technology and my paradigm could possibly be marketed for educational or therapeutic uses.
3. Healthy Aging: A great utility exists for observational learning interventions directed toward those with reduced mobility or impaired motor function due to aging or neurological injury. In older age, subtle improvements in motor performance can have a profound influence on quality of life. For example, improved ability and confidence in one's ability to carry out daily tasks, such as making a cup of tea or preparing dinner, can lead to independence and less reliance on care workers. Findings from the proposed research will not only pave the way for possible interventions to assist with new task learning in advanced age, but will also lead to a brain-based model of the underlying mechanism(s) controlling learning by observation, which might aid in understanding how to prevent its decline. Through links with the University of the Third age and the NHS (see Pathways to Impact), the project builds links between medical practitioners, researchers and the wider public, with the aim of disseminating findings to end users who could influence policy and implement interventions with older individuals.
4. Knowledge Exchange: A hallmark of quality research in the social sciences is direct engagement and dialogue with those individuals who might apply the latest research findings to their daily practice. The 'Watch and Learn' project seeks to achieve this through a dedicated knowledge exchange forum, as part of a 2-day workshop toward the end of the project that gathers leading researchers, educators, and therapists who use observational learning techniques in their work. Importantly, this forum will focus on two-way discussion between the research and practice experts, with active encouragement for those individuals who use observational learning techniques in their practice to provide detailed feedback on their needs to the researchers so that our work can be more quickly and effectively used in applied contexts.

As detailed in the Academic Beneficiaries section, the project also stands to benefit academic users ranging from colleagues working with evidence-based research to those studying learning in other departments.