Psychophysiological Studies II. Performance and Physiological Response in Coronary Prone and Noncoronary Prone Individuals.
Abstract
This final report details the background, findings, and conclusions of two studies completed in the Psychophysiology Laboratory of Baruch College, City University of New York, over the past twelve months. In Experiment I 36 individuals, 18 classified as Type A and 18 as Type B using the Jenkins Activity Survey, performed a perceptual-motor task (simulated race car driving) along with a secondary task (simple reaction time) while a number of physiological measures were obtained. The measures were heart rate (HR), electromyogram (EMG) and skin temperature (ST). Analyses of performance results indicated that Type A individuals significantly slowed their reaction times (secondary task) when performing qualifying trials compared to practice trials. Experiment II tested a different sample of 36 subjects (18 each of Type A and B) in a design which compared the effects of participation in both a perceptual-motor and a cognitive (short term memory) task. The results showed that Type A subjects produced faster RT responses than Type Bs, but only while engaged in the cognitive task. The As also out performed the Bs in the cognitive task. In general, the cognitive task seemed to absorb more of the subjects' attention since RTs were significantly slower in the cognitive as compared to the perceptual-motor one. The Type As also had significantly higher skin conductance than Bs, although this was not differentiated according to task. An interesting finding here is that while SC is higher for As than Bs, skin temperature (ST) is also higher.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 30, 1986
- Accession Number
- ADA170070
Entities
People
- John L. Andreassi
- N. Mauro Juszczak
Organizations
- Baruch College