Effects of covert repetition instruction and vocal blocking procedure on the acquisition and maintenance of tact in foreign languages.
Published in The Psychological Record, 2026
Summary
This study compared two instructional arrangements for foreign-language tact acquisition: covert repetition instruction and a vocal blocking procedure. Ten undergraduate students learned Spanish tacts using an adapted alternating treatments design.
Across most participants, fewer sessions were required to reach mastery under the covert repetition instruction condition than under the vocal blocking condition. Maintenance of acquired tacts also tended to be higher following covert repetition instruction, although interpretation is constrained by differential post-mastery exposure across conditions. The study did not directly measure covert rehearsal; therefore, the findings are best interpreted in terms of how different instructional arrangements structured observable response requirements during learning.
Research line
- Building: instructional arrangements for forming and maintaining foreign-language tact repertoires
- Verbal Behavior: tact acquisition, covert repetition instruction, and vocal blocking
- Foreign Language Learning: Spanish tact instruction with undergraduate students
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Recommended citation
Yamaguchi, M., Yusunoki, D., & Matsuda, S. (2026). Effects of covert repetition instruction and vocal blocking procedure on the acquisition and maintenance of tact in foreign languages. The Psychological Record. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40732-026-00694-z
Recommended citation: Yamaguchi, M., Yusunoki, D., & Matsuda, S. (2026). Effects of covert repetition instruction and vocal blocking procedure on the acquisition and maintenance of tact in foreign languages. *The Psychological Record*. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40732-026-00694-z
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