Which principle states that skills improve most when they are practiced?

• A. Recency
• B. Primacy
• C. Practice
• D. Association

Answer: (C)

Repeated, focused practice drives skill improvement because performance becomes faster, more accurate, and more automatic with repetition. Each practice session reinforces the correct movements, helps you tune timing, and provides feedback that you can use to correct errors. Over time, neural pathways involved in the skill become stronger and more efficient, making the action smoother and less effortful.

Recency is about how recently something was learned and affects short-term recall, not long-term improvement of a skill. Primacy refers to the advantage of items learned first in a sequence, which also relates to memory rather than how you actually perform a skill. Association involves linking ideas to cues to aid memory, not the ongoing refinement of a physical or procedural ability. Because the question focuses on how to improve a skill through ongoing performance, practice is the best fit.