Instructional Variations and Adults' Conceptual Tempo Performance

Summary

Forty-six college students were given the adult form of Kagan's Matching Familiar Figures Test twice, once under the standard (neutral) instructions, and a second time during which Ss were randomly assigned to one of three instruction groups. Two groups received instructions to minimize either response time or errors; a third group received neutral instructions. During the second administration, the group instructed to minimize response time showed more errors and lower response latency than the group instructed to minimize errors. Variances during the two administrations were compared within each group, with the use of the F-max test. Variances in the neutral group did not differ, but those in the other groups did, with variances significantly smaller during the second administration of the task. These results suggest that conceptual tempo reflects differences in implicit information processing criteria, which can be changed voluntarily, rather than automatic dispositional personality differences.