Physiological Response Specificity,Arousal,Ane Task Performance 1

Abstract

Two groups of 25 Ss were given three different tasks to perform, (1) a verbal paired-associate learning task, (2) a pursuit rotor task, and (3) a finger dexterity task. One group performed the tasks under high arousal (electric shock) and the other under low arousal (no shock). A number of physiological measures, including muscle tension, heart rate, skin resistance, and blood pressure, were also recorded. On the basis of these physiological measures, each S was classified according to the physiological function in which he showed the greatest relative activity over the three tasks. This was done in order to determine whether S's most active physiological index was related in any systematic way to his task performance. Results showed that neither arousal condition nor most active index was related to performance on the verbal learning task. On the two motor tasks, however, performance was, in general, better under high arousal than under low arousal, and, in addition, varied with S's most active physiological index. It appears, therefore, that 5"s typical mode of channelling activation may influence his performance on certain tasks.

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