# Skill Acquisition Skill acquisition is the process of developing competence through learning and practice. Fitts and Posner's (1967) model identifies three stages: cognitive (understanding what to do), associative (refining through practice), and autonomous (automatic, effortless performance). [[Anders Ericsson]]'s [[Deliberate Practice]] research shows that quality of practice matters more than quantity. [[Hubert Dreyfus]]'s five-stage model (novice → expert) emphasizes that experts transcend rules to act from embodied intuition. Key factors: feedback, progressive challenge, and focused attention. Skill acquisition connects to [[Expertise]], [[Growth Mindset]], and debates about talent vs practice in the [[Nature vs Nurture]] discussion. ## Fitts & Posner Stages | Stage | Characteristics | |-------|-----------------| | Cognitive | Learning rules, high attention | | Associative | Refining, error correction | | Autonomous | Automatic, minimal attention | ## References - Fitts & Posner. *Human Performance* (1967) ## Related - [[Deliberate Practice]] - [[Expertise]] - [[Anders Ericsson]] - [[Hubert Dreyfus]] - [[Nature vs Nurture]]