There is an optimal length of time for training sessions to maximize retention
Extensive empirical research, including meta-analyses and randomized trials, demonstrates that spacing training sessions over time (distributed practice) generally optimizes long-term skill retention and learning compared to massed practice, although specific motor skills or contexts may occasionally show short-term benefits from massed schedules.
The claim posits an optimal length of time for training sessions to maximize retention. This taps into the robust psychological and educational literature comparing massed versus distributed (spaced) practice. Multiple high-quality papers, including a large meta-analysis (Paper 3), randomized trials on CPR and motor learning (Papers 0, 1), and neurobiological studies (Paper 8), consistently show that spacing out training across optimal intervals improves long-term retention compared to massed practice. While a single study (Paper 7) found a short-term benefit for massed practice in a specific sports throwing task, the overwhelming weight of meta-analytic and experimental evidence clearly favors distributed practice, supporting the existence of optimal temporal intervals for retention. Therefore, the verdict is SUPPORTED.
Robert Anderson, Alexandre Sebaldt, Yiqun Lin, A. Cheng. Optimal training frequency for acquisition and retention of high-quality CPR skills: A randomized trial.. 2019. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resuscitation.2018.10.033
Demonstrates that monthly distributed CPR training sessions are significantly more effective for one-year skill retention than 3, 6, or 12-month intervals.
Fuad MUSTOFA, Mansur MANSUR, Erick BURHAEİN. Differences in the Effect of Learning Methods Massed Practice Throwing and Distributed Practice on Learning Outcomes Skills for the Accuracy of Top Softball. 2019. https://doi.org/10.25307/jssr.571793
Found that massed practice yielded a significantly higher percentage increase in softball throwing accuracy compared to distributed practice in this specific context.
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Y. Kwon, J. Kwon, Myoung-Hee Lee. Effectiveness of motor sequential learning according to practice schedules in healthy adults; distributed practice versus massed practice. 2015. https://doi.org/10.1589/jpts.27.769
Shows that distributed practice schedules enhance motor skill acquisition and retention compared to massed practice.
Rhys D. Mawson, Sean H. K. Kang. The Distributed Practice Effect on Classroom Learning: A Meta-Analytic Review of Applied Research. 2025. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs15060771
A meta-analysis of classroom learning confirms a moderate overall benefit for distributed practice over massed practice on retention and learning outcomes.
Ramesh Kaipa, Bethany Howard, Roha M. Kaipa, Éric Turcat, Laurielle Prema. Role of Massed Versus Distributed Practice in Learning Novel Foreign Language Utterances.. 2019. https://doi.org/10.1123/mc.2018-0007
Finds that distributed practice schedules result in superior learning and retention of novel foreign language utterances compared to massed practice.
Centofante E, Fralleoni L, Lupascu CA, Migliore M, Rinaldi A, Mele A. Specific patterns of neural activity in the hippocampus after massed or distributed spatial training.. 2023. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-39882-0
Indicates that spaced training with appropriate inter-session time intervals promotes greater stability and persistence of memory traces in the hippocampus.
Ma Y, Kyuchukova D, Jiao F, Batsikadze G, Nitsche MA, Yavari F. The impact of temporal distribution on fear extinction learning.. 2025. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijchp.2024.100536
Demonstrates that temporal distribution and spacing of learning sessions critically impact long-term extinction retention.
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