Channel Capacity for Kinesthetic Torque Information

Abstract

A previous study (Russell & Marteniuk, 1974) used informational analysis of absolute judgments to investigate the capacity of the kinesthetic system to transmit information derived from torque cues. As perfect transmission was not obtained in that study, no firm statement regarding channel capacity could be made. Four experiments were conducted in which five subjects made judgments concerning the intensity of 2, 4, 6, and 8 categories, respectively, in an attempt to determine the channel capacity for torque. Information transfer for the four experiments was 1.00, 1.45, 1.60, and 1.67 bits, respectively. It is argued that the latter figure probably reflects the true capacity of the kinesthetic system rather than the 2.09 bits previously reported.