Showing papers in "Perceptual and Motor Skills in 1978"
TL;DR: A paper-and-pencil test of spatial visualization was constructed from the figures used in the chronometric study of Shepard and Metzler (1971) as discussed by the authors, which showed substantial internal consistency (Kuder-Richardson 20 =.88), a test-retest reliability (83), and consistent sex differences over the entire range of ages investigated.
Abstract: A new paper-and-pencil test of spatial visualization was constructed from the figures used in the chronometric study of Shepard and Metzler (1971). In large samples, the new test displayed substantial internal consistency (Kuder-Richardson 20 = .88), a test-retest reliability (.83), and consistent sex differences over the entire range of ages investigated. Correlations with other measures indicated strong association with tests of spatial visualization and virtually no association with tests of verbal ability.
2,320 citations
TL;DR: An experiment was conducted to determine the degree to which individuals focus upon the eye region of others while visually inspecting their faces, with each of the remaining parts of the face being looked at less.
Abstract: An experiment was conducted to determine the degree to which individuals focus upon the eye region of others while visually inspecting their faces. Using an eye-tracking camera, 16 male subjects spent approximately 40% of their looking time focused upon the eye region of facial photographs, with each of the remaining parts of the face being looked at less.
181 citations
TL;DR: It was suggested that a varied practice schedule may facilitate the initial formation of motor schema, and this process may be enhanced by participation in a physical education program.
Abstract: To assess the potential effect of specific and varied practice on the development of motor schema, 64 children in two age groups (8 yr. and 12 yr.) were tested on a simple throwing task at the beginning and end of a 12-wk. physical education program. For the throwing test the children were assigned to either a specificity or a schema group (varied practice). The task was performed without visual feedback, but knowledge of results was given after each trial. Prior to both tests at the criterion target, the specific group was given practice throws using the criterion target distance, whereas the schema group practiced on two other targets. No differences were found between the two groups at the beginning of the program but on the posttest those children receiving a variety of practice on the throwing task performed significantly better than the specific-practice group. Thus it was suggested that a varied practice schedule may facilitate the initial formation of motor schema, and this process may be enhanced by participation in a physical education program.
133 citations
TL;DR: A tapping test in which the tasks required a synchronous response to a periodic sound signal by the finger tapping was performed by 27 normal subjects and 146 patients with Parkinson's disease, some patients could not maintain a synchronised response at a critical frequency and showed a hastened tapping, independent of the input signal frequencies, the ‘hastening phenomenon.’
Abstract: A tapping test in which the tasks required a synchronous response to a periodic sound signal by the finger tapping was performed by 27 normal subjects and 146 patients with Parkinson's disease. Some patients could not maintain a synchronous response at a critical frequency of 2.5 or 5 Hz (taps per second) and showed a hastened tapping of 5 6 Hz, independent of the input signal frequencies, i.e., the 'hastening phenomenon.' The other patients and normal subjects could respond synchronously up to 5 7 Hz. Autocorrelational analysis of the sequential tapping intervals suggested that the synchronized response was performed by a feedback control with the input signal as target except at 2.5 and 5 Hz, whereas the hastened tapping of patients was a random process. The frequency-dependence of the error in the tapping was interpreted as representing an intrinsic oscillation in the central nervous system, which would be masked in normal subjects but released in patients with Parkinson's disease. Around 2.5 or 5 Hz the error or response becomes so large that some patients can no longer maintain the synchronized response and show a hastened tapping due to this intrinsic oscillation.
129 citations
TL;DR: A model has been introduced to evaluate differentiated ratings of perceived exertion (local and central) in comparison to the over-all measure to help aid in a better understanding of the mechanisms by which the subjective perception of exertion is determined during different types of physical work.
Abstract: The literature suggests two major factors determine rated perceived exertion during physical work. These two factors are a local factor, i.e., sensations or feelings of strain in the working muscles and/or joints; and a central factor, i.e., sensations or feelings primarily associated with the cardiorespiratory systems. In some experiments heart rate and minute ventilation (central vactors) appear to be the dominant cues for rated perceived exertion, while in others, local factors such as blood lactate concentration and muscular discomfort seem to be the prominent cues. However, it appears that when a particular cue is accentuated by either elevated rate, concentration or value over others it can dominate the over-all rating of perceived exertion. After evaluating the existing literature, a model has been introduced to evaluate differentiated ratings of perceived exertion (local and central) in comparison to the over-all measure. This model may help aid in a better understanding of the mechanisms by which the subjective perception of exertion is determined during different types of physical work.
118 citations
TL;DR: To explore the effects of mental rehearsal on the performance of a motor skill, 32 college undergraduates were scored on dart-throwing ability and randomly assigned to one of 4 practice conditions: no-practice controls,mental rehearsal only, mental rehearsal with simulated dart-Throwing motor movements, and direct physical practice.
Abstract: To explore the effects of mental rehearsal on the performance of a motor skill, 32 college undergraduates were scored on dart-throwing ability and randomly assigned to one of 4 practice conditions: no-practice controls, mental rehearsal only, mental rehearsal with simulated dart-throwing motor movements, and direct physical practice. Following 6 days of mental or physical practice by the experimental groups, the performance level on the dart-throwing task was again measured for all subjects. Comparison of improvement showed statistically significant differences between the groups. Follow-up tests showed that all experimental groups differed significantly from the no-practice group, there were no significant differences between mental practice groups and direct physical practice resulted in improvements significantly higher than any other form of practice.
76 citations
TL;DR: It is concluded that a change occurs in the manner of controlling reaching movements at age 7, and the active performance improved progressively until attaining an adult-like level, while the passive performance remained unchanged.
Abstract: The accuracy of active and passive movements was measured in 4-yr.- to 11-yr.-old children and in adults performing a visuo-manual pointing task without seeing their limbs. Accuracy varied according to age and nature of movement. The younger children performed accurate movements. At age 7 the accuracy suddenly decreased while the difference between active and passive movements increased. Between 7 and 11 yr., the active performance improved progressively until attaining an adult-like level, while the passive performance remained unchanged. It is concluded that a change occurs in the manner of controlling reaching movements at age 7.
75 citations
TL;DR: Children's perception of pain was investigated in an exploratory study and a projective test was developed using cartoons to illustrate two situations in which children commonly experience pain, a self-administered hammer blow and a doctor-administering needle.
Abstract: Children's perception of pain was investigated in an exploratory study. Some synaesthetic aspects were examined such as the color of pain, texture, shape, pattern and continuous vs intermittent qua...
74 citations
TL;DR: A faculty of psychologists is much more skeptical regarding the existence of ESP than beginning psychology students as discussed by the authors. The students, however, are unaware of this discrepancy and do not understand the cultural and psychological factors that encourage such beliefs.
Abstract: A faculty of psychologists is much more skeptical regarding the existence of ESP than beginning psychology students. The students, however, are unaware of this discrepancy. The greater acceptance of ESP by the students is due to cultural and psychological factors which encourage such beliefs. The skepticism of academic psychologists arises because the evidence for ESP has failed to meet generally accepted scientific standards. Among these are (1) a replicable experiment, (2) the elimination of more plausible explanations, (3) isolation of an independent variable, (4) a coherent theory, and (5) practical applications. Much of the research in ESP may be criticized because of the lack of accurate reporting, improper design, and inadequate controls. In view of these considerations behavioral scientists should make a public disavowal of belief in ESP.
67 citations
TL;DR: Sex differences in spatial ability may be related to different problem-solving methods, and men and women were more likely to use concrete and unorganized methods and to give up or skip problems.
Abstract: Sex differences in spatial ability may be related to different problem-solving methods. Two spatial tests, Choosing A Path and Witkin's Rod and Frame Test, and related strategy questionnaires were given to 50 male and 50 female adults. Multivariate analyses of variance on the strategy questionnaires were significant. Women were more likely to use concrete and unorganized methods and to give up or skip problems. Spearman correlations between the males' and females' rank orders of strategies were high and significant, so that both similarities and differences between the sexes were demonstrated.
67 citations
TL;DR: The effects of relative frequency of knowledge of results on the retention of a motor skill was studied and Schmidt's theory of recognition schema updates suggested that the recognition schema is updated only on trials on which the feedback stimuli associated with the criterion position are experienced in conjunction withknowledge of results.
Abstract: The effects of relative frequency of knowledge of results on the retention of a motor skill was studied. Adams' theory (1971) contends that the perceptual trace of a criterion position gains on increment of strenth each time the feedback stimuli associated with the criterion position are experienced and that it is the strength of the perceptual trace that determines retention. Schmidt's theory (1975), however, suggests that the recognition schema is updated only on trials on which the feedback stimuli associated with the criterion position are experienced in conjunction with knowledge of results and that it is the precision of the recognition schema that determines retention. Two experiments were conducted. The results provided evidence contrary to Adams' theory. Schmidt's theory, however, was only partially supported.
TL;DR: The results demonstrated the independence between metabolic fatigue and visual capacity, and excluded coincidence/anticipation capacity.
Abstract: The present study was designed to investigate the effects of exercise to exhaustion on different components of visual capacity: visual field, and coincidence/anticipation capacity. 16 male subjects were first familiarized with the three visual tests, one day before being submitted to a prefatigue visual test. Metabolic fatigue was induced by working to exhaustion on a bicycle ergometer. Once fatigued, all subjects undertook the visual tests. Pre- and post-fatigue visual measurements were not significantly different. The results demonstrated the independence between metabolic fatigue and visual capacity.
TL;DR: Motor development (body coordination) and self-concept scores were significantly higher for the group who participated in the physical activity program than for controls who did not, and there was a linear trend in motor skill improvement.
Abstract: To investigate the effect of organized physical activity on the development of specific motor skills (body coordination and self-concept) of elementary age children, 344 children from the ethnic origins, black and white, were administered the Schilling Body Coordination Test and the Martinek-Zaichkowsky Self-concept Scale for Children. Motor development (body coordination) and self-concept scores were significantly higher for the group who participated in the physical activity program than for controls who did not. There was a linear trend in motor skill improvement, with Grades 2, 3, 4, and 5 showing significantly higher gains than Grade 1. The self-concept scores indicated a significant decline for Grades 3, 4, and 5. There were no significant differences between blacks and whites. A two-way interaction was found between grade and race in motor development, with blacks demonstrating lower mean scores than whites in Grade 2 but higher mean scores in Grade 5. Correlations between self-concept and motor development were non-significant.
TL;DR: The evidence indicates that the development of visual information processing in reading-disabled children is similar to that in controls but occurs at a slower rate.
Abstract: Sumwry.--8- and 11-yr.-old reading-disabled children were compared in two experiments with conuols matched on intelligence and age. Exp. I measured duration of visual information 'store by means of a separation threshold technique. Exp. I1 determined the rate of transfer from visual information store to short-term memory using a backward masking technique. Results from Exp. I showed that at each age specific reading-disabled children had significantly longer durations of visual information store than controls. The difference beween the reading ability groups decreased with increasing age. Exp. I1 demonstrated that rate of transfer of information was significantly slower for specific reading-disabled children than for controls at both age levels. In contrast to Exp. I, this difference increased with increasing age. The resulcs are considered in terms of their possible relevance to developmental lag theories. The evidence indicates that the development of visual information processing in reading-disabled children is similar to that in controls but occurs at a slower rate.
TL;DR: The relationship between REM sleep deprivation and pain threshold was measured using 36 Sprague-Dawley female rats and a significant lowering of threshold to painful electrical stimulation was observed during each of the post-treatment tests.
Abstract: The relationship between REM sleep deprivation and pain threshold was measured using 36 Sprague-Dawley female rats. Relative to that of the controls, a significant lowering of threshold to painful electrical stimulation was observed during each of the post-treatment tests, i.e., immediate, and after 3- and 24-hr. recovery periods, for the animals which had been REM deprived.
TL;DR: To achieve a more powerful test of this relationship than has been provided by any single study, the data from the five studies which have considered it were pooled and tested and the resulting correlation between birth order and handedness was near zero.
Abstract: Bakan has suggested that left-handedness is the result of left hemishperic pyramidal motor dysfunction following perinatal hypoxia. To a degree support for the validity of this hypothesis rests on Bakan's (1971, 1977a) findings that left-handed college students were more likely the progeny of birth orders designated as "high-risk" than right-handed students. Attempts by others to replicate Bakan's data have been unsuccessful. To achieve a more powerful test of this relationship than has been provided by any single study, the data from the five studies which have considered it were pooled and tested. The resulting correlation between birth order and handedness was near zero.
TL;DR: Initial work toward a more definitive kinematic analysis of perceptual-motor processes involved initially in accommodation of naive subjects to treadmill walking is described.
Abstract: Initial work toward a more definitive kinematic analysis of perceptual-motor processes involved initially in accommodation of naive subjects to treadmill walking is described. The kinematic cyclograph technique holds promise of achieving this.
TL;DR: It was concluded that field dependence and heart-rate perception are related to classically conditioned heart- rate increase for some subjects and further thatField dependence may be a potent variable operating in those situations involving the voluntary control of heart rate without exteroceptive feedback.
Abstract: Two experiments focused on two information variables relevant to changes in heart rate, field dependence and the ability to perceive one's own heart rate. In Exp. I, 14 field-independent and 17 fie...
TL;DR: Both males and females obtained a significant superiority in the right visual field and significant laterality coefficients indicative of processing by the left hemisphere in a tachistoscopic task.
Abstract: 56 male and 56 female familial right-handers were given a tachistoscopic task requiring recognition of trigrams presented binocularly and vertically in the right or left visual field for individuality determined brief durations. Both males and females obtained a significant superiority in the right visual field and significant laterality coefficients indicative of processing by the left hemisphere. Implications for research on sex differences in hemispheric asymmetry are discussed.
TL;DR: Patients' scores on the Halstead-Reitan Battery, the WAIS and the MMPI were highly correlated with employment status (employed or chronically unemployed), income, and skills required on the jobs held.
Abstract: Surnmiwy.-Previous research has suggested that patients' neuropsychological test scores correlate not only with neurologic status but also with their success in coping with some of the demands of daily living. This study investigated the utility of such laboratory test scores in predicting several vocational variables. Patients who had received neuropsychological evaluations were recontacted and questioned about their employment over the previous 6 mo. Of the 78 individuals who participated, 25 had been chronically unemployed. The remaining 53 were asked about job stabiliry, hours worked, and wages earned, and were administered the Minnesota Job Requirements Questionnaire. Patients' scores on the Halstead-Reitan Batrery, the WAIS and the MMPI were highly correlated with employment status (employed or chronically unemployed), income, and skills required on the jobs held. The results suggest that these tests may have clinical utility in assessing patients' employability, as well as the types of jobs for which they are suited.
TL;DR: Three chronic psychiatric patients in a halfway house were enrolled in a program of regular supervised jogging and the jogging group showed significantly less posttest trait anxiety and the role of multi-process relaxation is discussed.
Abstract: Three chronic psychiatric patients in a halfway house were enrolled in a program of regular supervised jogging. In comparison with three other chronic patients from the same setting who received the same amount of attention but no jogging, the jogging group showed significantly less posttest trait anxiety. No significant posttest differences in body image were found between groups. The role of multi-process relaxation is discussed.
TL;DR: Men and women differ in the utilization of their creative capacity possibly due to the influence of sex-role stereotypes, according to the results of this study.
Abstract: This study investigated the relationship between creativity, imagery, and sex-role orientation in men and women. Instruments measuring creativity, creative production, imagery, and sex-role orientation were administered to 163 students enrolled in introductory psychology. The results showed that creative ability and vividness of imagery were related in women but not in men, whereas creative ability and creative production were related in men but not in women. Creative ability correlated with femininity whereas creative production correlated with masculinity. The author concluded that: (1) men and women show differing patterns of cognitive functioning in the creative process; and (2) men and women differ in the utilization of their creative capacity possibly due to the influence of sex-role stereotypes.
TL;DR: In this paper, the purpose of the study was to determine whether selected personality traits varied between two subgroups of martial artists, and a total of 52 people composed the superior martial artist sample.
Abstract: The purpose of this study was to determine whether selected personality traits varied between two subgroups of martial artists. A total of 52 people composed the superior martial artist sample and ...
TL;DR: The transient efficacy of prior midline head restriction for the elimination of lateral differences in both spontaneous head movements and responsiveness to tactile input suggests that behavioral asymmetry is already well-established in the newborn.
Abstract: Lateral differences in habituation of ipsilateral head-turning to repeated tactile perioral stimulation following midline head restriction was studied in 44 full-term neonates. Left-sided stimulation had a significantly greater and faster decremental effect than right-sided stimulation. Even in the absence of tactile stimulation (Control Group), head-turning to the left decreased systematically whereas head-turning to the right did not. The transient efficacy of prior midline head restriction for the elimination of lateral differences in both spontaneous head movements and responsiveness to tactile input suggests that behavioral asymmetry is already well-established in the newborn.
TL;DR: The validity and reliability of a swimming scale designed for children, ages 2 to 6 yr.
Abstract: The purpose of this research was to establish the validity and reliability of a swimming scale designed for children, ages 2 to 6 yr Subjects (N = 57) were tested on nine categories of tasks These tasks were selected from the skills traditionally included within the motor domain of swimming; therefore, the scale is assumed to be valid Intraclass correlation coefficients were used to estimate the interjudge objectivity, and within-day, and between-days reliabilities The range of values for each were: 99 to 98, 99 to 96, and 97 to 84, respectively As these values are acceptable, the swimming scale seems to be an appropriate instrument for assessing the performance of preschool children
TL;DR: The origin of the characteristic disturbances of rhythm formation in patients with Parkinson's disease (the hastening phenomenon) was discussed, using a second-order system of the periodic response.
Abstract: The origin of the characteristic disturbances of rhythm formation in patients with Parkinson's disease (the hastening phenomenon) was discussed, using a second-order system of the periodic response...
TL;DR: Subjects' physiological responses and rated reactions to a medical film and an erotic film were assessed and reported interoception of the magnitude of physiological responses was inaccurate, especially for subjects in low fitness.
Abstract: Subjects' physiological responses and rated reactions to a medical film and an erotic film were assessed. Later cardiovascular fitness levels were determined by subjects' physiological responses to...
TL;DR: Reading ability seems to involve analytic-sequential processing of selected letters and a holistic-simultaneous perception of the salient features of the entire word, and the dyslexic child is most likely deficient in either one of the two processes while being normal in the other.
Abstract: Reading ability seems to involve analytic-sequential processing of selected letters and a holistic-simultaneous perception of the salient features of the entire word. The dyslexic child, being norm...
TL;DR: Comparison of the figures drawn by black and white children confirmed three other hypotheses based on the voluminous literature suggesting that black children are less accepting of their racial group membership than whites.
Abstract: The race of the figure drawn on the Draw-A-Person Test is proposed as a measure of acceptance of racial identity. Reliability and validity of this measure were explored in a two-part study. Part 1 confirmed the hypothesis that the race of the figure drawn is related to the race of the child producing the drawing. Comparison of the figures drawn by black (n = 157) and white (n = 167) children confirmed three other hypotheses based on the voluminous literature suggesting that black children are less accepting of their racial group membership than whites. These hypotheses were: (a) whites should be more likely to draw figures that are clearly white than blacks are to draw figures that are clearly black, (b) whites should be less likely to draw blacks than blacks are to draw whites, and (c) blacks should be more likely to avoid giving clear indication of the race of the figures they draw than are whites. Inter-rater reliability for the race of the figure drawn was .79. Five weeks after the initial drawing, a ...
TL;DR: Significant correlations between maternal age at birth and child's ability remained in three of the four possible birth order/social class combinations.
Abstract: Associations of maternal age at birth and subsequent intelligence test scores of children were examined in a series of over 1500 young men from the Netherlands. All subjects were members of 2-child families and were resident in Amsterdam at age 19 yr. Possible confounding by birth order, spacing interval, social class and sex of sibling were considered. Significant correlations between maternal age and child's ability remained in three of the four possible birth order/social class combinations.