PRIOR POSITIONING RESPONSES AS A FACTOR IN SHORT-TERM RETENTION OF A SIMPLE MOTOR TASK

Examined whether short-term retention in a simple positioning task was affected by the number of prior positioning responses. In a 3 * 3 Graeco-Latin-square design, 45 undergraduates were given 3 target positions (10, 60, and 90-), 3 retention intervals (5, 15, and 50 sec.), and 3 amounts of prior positioning responses (0, 2, and 4). Absolute errors at recall were directly related to the number of prior positioning responses and to the length of the retention interval. The amplitude of the movement to the target positions had no significant effect. Results were interpreted in terms of decay of the memory trace; however, proactive interference was considered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved). © 1969 American Psychological Association.