Effect of Mass Loading on the Performance of a Linear Positioning Task

Abstract

To determine the effect of mass loading on the performance of a skilled perceptual-motor task, measures of performance (in terms of number of correct responses) were obtained for 40 blindfolded undergraduate subjects on a linear positioning task under conditions of 0-gm., 909-gm., 1,818-gm., 2,727-gm., and 3,636-gm. manipulandum loads. With respect to the performance measure, the increasing load conditions produced an inverted U-function, with 1,818 gm. resulting in the best performance and 0 gm. producing the poorest performance. It was concluded that skilled perceptual-motor performance can be improved by optimizing the physical characteristics of the manipulandum. The results were interpreted in terms of the augmentation of both attention and kinesthetic information.