Ss were divided into high activation (HiAct) and low activation (LoAct) groups on the basis of pre-learning basal skin resistance (BSR). All Ss were given 3 trials on 2 different lists of paired-associates and the number of competing responses, omission errors, and correct responses emitted were recorded. In support of activation theory, it was found that HiAct Ss consistently made more competing responses but fewer omission errors than the LoAct Ss. The study also replicated the systematic decrement in number of competing responses across Trial 2 positions found in an earlier study and termed there the “habituational position effect.”
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