An attempt was made to investigate the interactive roles of social isolation, movement restriction, and prior information in the sensory deprivation experiment. 20 Ss were put into an 8-hr. sensory deprivation condition and 20 other Ss into an 8-hr. social isolation (with sensory stimulation) condition. All Ss were also seen on a non-confined control day in the laboratory. The order of the control and experimental days was counterbalanced within each group. These groups were compared with other groups with less movement restriction. The results indicated that the interaction between confinement and familiarity-uncertainty set produced psychological stress effects. Sensory deprivation and uncertainty produced “primary-process” effects; movement restriction enhanced these effects and produced additional discomfort and more autonomic arousal.
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