Consolidation of Pursuit Rotor Learning under Conditions of Induced Arousal

Abstract

The purpose of this investigation was to test the basic tenets of consolidation theory by studying the relationship between arousal and the performance and learning of a pursuit rotor task. Ninety-six subjects (48 men and 48 women) were randomly assigned to one of three induced arousal conditions (control, failure-feedback, and electrical shock). Subjects were given twenty-one 20-second acquisition trials under induced arousal conditions, followed 24 or 48 hours later by nine trials in the absence of induced arousal (trials 22–30). The Spielberger A-trait test was administered before the 21 acquisition trials and the A-state test was given afterward. The results of the A-trait test revealed that arousal conditions were equal in terms of normal anxiety levels, while results of the A-state test demonstrated that subjects under induced arousal conditions were indeed stressed (had higher levels of state anxiety). The 21 acquisition trials (seven three-trial blocks) were analyzed using time on target (TOT) scores to determine the effects of arousal on performance. The results of this analysis revealed reliable differences for sex and trial blocks, but not for arousal. A significant triple interaction among the three main effects was primarily caused by a decrement in performance by the female subjects who received failure-feedback. TOT recall scores failed to reveal a facilitative effect due to arousal as predicted by perseverative consolidation theory. In summary, the results of the investigation provided partial support for the action decrement notion but none for the action increment notion of consolidation theory.

Key Words:

• consolidation theory
• action decrement
• action increment
• arousal
• anxiety
• action phase
• recall
• rotary pursuit