GSR CONDITIONING WITH LONG INTERSTIMULUS INTERVALS

4 GROUPS OF 15 STUDENTS EACH RECEIVED 20 CLASSICAL CONDITIONING TRIALS WITH AN INTERSTIMULUS INTERVAL (ISI) OF EITHER 4, 8, 12, OR 16 SEC., AND 2 GROUPS OF 15 SS EACH RECEIVED 20 PSEUDOCONDITIONING TRIALS WITH CS DURATION OF EITHER 4.1 OR 16.1 SEC. MAGNITUDE AND PERCENTAGE GSR DURING 4 RESPONSE INTERVALS AND AMPLITUDE DURING 1 RESPONSE INTERVAL FOLLOWING CS ONSET WERE ANALYZED. SIGNIFICANT CONDITIONING OCCURRED IN EACH RESPONSE INTERVAL ALTHOUGH THE MEASURE INDICATING IT VARIED WITH THE INTERVAL. SIGNIFICANT ISI EFFECTS WERE PRESENT IN EACH RESPONSE INTERVAL, AND EACH MEASURE SHOWED THE EFFECT AT LEAST ONCE ACROSS INTERVALS. THE COURSE OF CONDITIONING FROM THE 1ST-4TH INTERVAL WAS ONE OF CONSIDERABLE RESPONSE ATTENUATION IN MAGNITUDE AND PERCENTAGE. EACH MEASURE DECLINED SIGNIFICANTLY DURING CONDITIONING IN THE 1ST INTERVAL, AND THOUGH A DECLINE IN RESPONSE STRENGTH WITHIN AN INTERVAL WAS GENERALLY ABSENT IN THE LATER INTERVALS, THERE WAS LITTLE RESEMBLING AN ACQUISITION FUNCTION WITH ANY OF THE MEASURES. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved). © 1968 American Psychological Association.