Perseverative behavior in a concept formation task as a function of manifest anxiety and rigidity and of punishment

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m u m m m i f t f t m u v x o n b t a concept ta sk a s a fohctxgn o f m anxjsst mam and e x g x b ity AND OF P U M

E liz a b e th \L e tts Wesley

A d is s e r t a t io n subm itted in p a r t ia l f u lf illm e n t o f the requirem ents fo r the degree of Doctor o f P h ilo s ­ ophy, in the Department o f P sych ology, in the Graduate C ollege of the S ta te U n iv e r s ity of low® A ugust, 1950

ProQ uest Number: 10598605

All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality o f this reproduction is d e p e n d e n t upon th e quality o f th e c o p y subm itted. In th e unlikely e v e n t that th e author did not sen d a c o m p le te manuscript an d there are missing p a g e s , th e s e will b e n o te d . Also, if m aterial had to b e rem o v ed , a n o te will in d icate th e d eletion .

uest, ProQuest 10598605 Published by ProQuest LLC (2017). Copyright o f th e Dissertation is held by th e Author. All rights reserved. This work is p r o tec te d aga in st unauthorized cop yin g under Title 17, United States C o d e Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106 - 1346

I0 \ c ay*. O \ . O .J) \ \ ^ 5 o . C o ^ , 2L

ACKNGWI^DCMiSOTS

The a u th or w is h e s to acknow ledge th© a s s i s t s no© o f Dr# X* B# Farber and Dr* Arthur I** Beaton In .th© p r e p a r a tio n o f t h i s t h e s is * Xn p a r t ic u la r , sh e I s g r a t e ­ f u l f o r th e c a r e f u l gu id an ce o f Dr* Farber throughout th© cou rse o f t h i s I n v e s t ig a t io n *

d . II

The U niversity of Iowa LIBRARIES

table of cgmfeots

Page Experim ent I 2

I n tr o d u c tio n * * * * * * * E xp erim en tal P rocedure * *

10

R e s u lt s and D is c u s s io n * *

IB

Summary

w

« . * . » * * » «

R eferen ces * . * . * , . *

51

Experim ent I I I n tr o d u c tio n * * * * * * *

54

E xp erim en tal Procedure * *

59

R e s u lt s and

D is c u s s io n *

61

* . * * * * • * .

77

R e fe r e n c e s « « * * « * « «

80

Appendix A * * « * * • • »

81

Appendix 3 • » * * • • «

»

82

Appendix 0 • » « * • « «

•

84

Appendix D « » • « » « •

*

86

Summary

A p p e n d ix !* *

* * * * * * *

Appendix F * * * * * *

•

•

•

i n

* *

8?

88

OF IX9CKSSS F igu re 1 2

3

4

5

6

Page Mean A n x iety S co re s a s a F u n ctio n o f D if f e r e n t le t r e ls o f R ig id it y * , • «

19

Median Humber o f T r ia ls' to OrIt or io n f o r R ig id , A nxious and Hormal Groups on S e r ie s I , I I , I I I and XT * *. . .

23

•

Median Humber o f C o rrected T r ia ls t o O r it e f lo n f o r R ig id , A nxious and Hormal Groups on S e r ie s I I , I I I and IV * * * *

26

Median Humber o f P e r s e v e r a t iv e R esponses Made by R ig id , A nxious and Hormal Groups on B e r io s X I, I I I and IF * « , * . * *

33

Median Humber o f T r ia ls t o C r ite r io n f o r form al and Hormal Shook Groups on S e r ie s X, I I , 111 and IV * * . * . .

63

Median Humber o f P ersesrerativ© R esp on ses Mad© by Hormal and Hormal Shook Groups on S e r i e s I I , XII and I ? »

69

.iv

fABM Of TABLES -v T ab le X IX

Pag© Order o f C o rrect Cuss

16

Mean®, Standard D e v ia tio n s and M edians o f Humber o f T r ia ls to C r ite r io n E sq u ired by th e R igid * A nxious and Hormal Croups on Four S e r ie s o f T r ia ls

XIX

Means, Standard D e v ia tio n s and M edians o f C orrected S c o r e s f o r th e E ig i^ A nxious and normal Croups on S e r ie s I I , I I I

IT

x/s»D * D e v ia te s and C orresponding P r o b a b i l i t i e s Based Upon g T e s ts Between C orrected T r ia ls t o C r it e r io n S co re s o f A nxious v s R ig id , A nxious v s Hormal and "orraal Croups fo r S e r ie s XX, 28

T

VI

VII

V III

M eans, o f th e Scores R ig id ,

Standard D e v ia tio n s' and M edians D if f e r e n c e s Between C o rrected on S e r ie s XI and S e r ie s IT f o r th e A nxious and Hormal Croups • * » .

29

Means, Standard D e v ia tio n s and Medians o f P e r se v e r e tiv ® Response; freq u en cy f o r R ig id , A nxious and Hormal Croups on S e r ie s I I , XII and IT . * . • • • . . * *

32

x/3*D * D e v ia te s and C orresponding P r o b a b i l i t i e s Based Upon V T e st Between P e r s e v e r e t iv e S c o r e s o f th e R ig id , Anxious and Hormal Croupe fo r S e r ie s I I , I I I and IT 35 Means Standard D e v ia tio n s and Median© o f th® D if fe r e n c e s Between P e r s e v e r a tio n R esp on ses on S e r ie s I I and S e r ie s IT f o r th© R ig id , A nxious and Hormal Croups

v

36

W

OF TABUS (continued) Page

fa tie

IX

X

XI

Mean®* Standard D eviation ® and Median® o f Itaber o f Trials to C r it e r io n R equired by th e Normal S to c k and Normal Groups on Four S e r ie s o f T r ia ls • « * * » • « « »

62

Means, Standard D e v ia tio n s and Medians o f C orrected S co re s f o r Noritai S tock and Normal Groups f o r S e r ie s I I , S e r ie s I I I , and S e r i e s IT * « » « « • « # « • » * » #

65

M eans, Standard D e v ia tio n s and Medians o f P e r s e v a r a tiv e Response® o f th e Hormal Shock and Normal Groups f o r la o h S e r ie s # #

6?

vi

z

Chapter I IOTBGDIJCTIGN P erform ances on c l i n i c a l t e a t s have o f te n been regard ed a s in d ic a t o r s o f g e n e r a l p e r s o n a lit y c h a r a c te r ­ is tic s *

One way o f s u b s t a n t ia t in g t h i s id e a in s p e c i f i c

in s t a n c e s i s to i d e n t i f y a g iv e n p e r s o n a lit y c h a r a c t e r is t ic o f an in d iv id u a l by some in d ep en d en t means and th en T in v e stig a te i t s r e la t io n s h ip t o perform ance on th e c l i n i c a l t a s k t h a t presum ably m easures i t *

Among th e p e r s o n a lit y

c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s o f te n a llu d e d to in c l i n i c a l t e s t i n g s i t u a t i o n s i s th a t o f b e h a v io r a l or symptomatic r i g id i t y * I t i s a d im ension o f b eh avior w id e ly r e fe r r e d t o in d e s c r ip t io n s o f both normal and abnormal in d iv id u a ls and o c c u p ie s an im p ortan t p la c e in th e v e r b a l s t o c k - in - t r a d e o f c l i n i c a l p s y c h o lo g is t s and o th e r s in t e r e s t e d in p e r s o n a lit y d e s c r ip t io n ( I n g e n e r a l, r i g i d i t y may be co n ceiv ed o f a s th e ten d en cy t o p e r s i s t in r e sp o n se s t h a t may p r e v io u s ly have been s u it a b le in t h i s or some o th e r s i t u a t i o n , but t h a t no lo n g e r appear adequate t o a c h ie v e cu rren t g o a ls o r t o s o lv e cu rren t p ro b lem s, a s co n sid ered from th e p o in t o f view o f an o b serv er*

Examples o f th e ty p e o f s t u d ie s

concerned w ith t h i s con cep t o f r i g i d i t y afi a p p lie d t o normal

groups ar© th q se o f Spearnan and h i s s tu d e n ts { ^

12)

5?helr p roced u re was t o a to in fliste rsu ch t e s t s a s th e a lt e r n a t io n o f sim p le motor r e s p o n s e s , th e a lt e r n a t io n o f c r e a t iv e e f f o r t ta s k ^ , se n so r y p e r s e v e r a t io n , and p e r sista n c © In a s in g le a c t i v i t y *

On t h e b a s is o f a

f a c t o r a n a ly s is o f th e r e s u l t s o f th e s e t e s t s , Spearman concluded t h a t a common f a c t o r o f p e r s e v e r a tio n , "p", was is o la t e d *

U sin g a s im ila r te c h n iq u e , Thurston© (19)

f a c t o r a n a ly zed a b a tte r y o f t e s t s in c lu d in g t e s t s o f r e a so n in g a b i l i t y , m otor c o o r d in a tio n , s p a t i a l r e la t io n s a b i l i t y , e t c # , and found m a b ilit y to s h if t s e t .

rfEw f a c t o r w hich he c a lle d th e

C a t t e l l ( 3 , 4 } h as a l s o u t i l i z e d

a f a c t o r a n a l y s i s tech n iq u e f o r stu d y in g p e r s e v e r a tio n o f resp on se.

A lthough h i s o r i g i n a l b a tt e r y o f t e s t s was

e s s e n t i a l l y th e same a s t h a t o f Spearman, h i - f a c t o r , w hich h© c a l l s " d is p o s it io n R ig id it y ," i s n ot based upon p er­ form ances on se n so r y p e r s e v e r a tio n t a s k s or motor p e r s is t e n c e ta s k s w hich w ere among th o se u sed t o d e f in e Spearman1 s "p" f a c t o r , but i s based c h i e f l y upon perform ance on t a s k s in v o lv in g th e a lt e r n a t io n o f c r e a t iv e e f f o r t .

G a t t e ll

d e s c r i e s d i s p o s i t i o n a l r i g i d i t y in term s o f th e ten d en cy t o perform a ta s k in some o ld , accustom ed fa s h io n a s opposed to t h e ten dency to perform I t in some new (b u t n ot ln t© llig e n c e~ d em a n d in g ) f a s h io n .

4 fh # d e f i n i t i o n s o f r i g i d i t y o f th is

u sed by in v e s t ig a t o r s

b eh a v io r in th e c l i n i c a l a rea ten d t o be r a th e r

s im ila r to th o s e used by th e f a c t o r a n a ly s ts *

G o l& stelh ,

f o r exam ple, s t a t e s t h a t r i g i d i t y i s ^phenom enon w hich w® meet

a g a in and a g a in in p a th o lo g y , but w hich a ls o

p la y s a

g r e a t r o l e in normal b ehavior*

I t c o n s is ts of

adherence to a p r e s e n t perform ance in an in a d eq u a te way, th a t i s , I n a way w hich d oes n o t correspond to th e situ atio n * * * (5, p . 209) In g e n e r a l, th e approach used by c l i n i c i a n s i n t h e i r stu d y o f r i g i d i t y ten d s t o d i f f e r from th a t o f th e f a c t o r a n a ly s t s in two wayss

I t i s more l i k e l y

to in v o lv e th e t e s t i n g o f p s y c h ia t r ic groups and i t ten d s to depend more upon t e s t s o f r e a so n in g or con cept form ation * Among th e i n v e s t i g a t o r s in th e c l i n i c a l area who have s tu d ie d r i g i d i t y in r e l a t i o n t o co n cep t form ation a re G o ld s te in and S ch eerer (6 ) who d e sc r ib e d r i g i d i t y a s one a s p e c t o f c o n c r e te b eh a v io r th ey found t o be character** i s t i c o f p a t ie n t s w ith c e r e b r a l p ath o lo g y *

T h is c o n c r e te *

n e s s o f b eh a v io r m s c h a r a c te r is e d by a d i f f i c u l t y in form ing a b s t r a c t co n ce p ts and in s h i f t i n g t h e s e co n cep ts once th ey had been formed*

Bahfmann and K asanln (10)

«&on§ o t h e r s , have s tu d ie d con cep t fo rm a tio n in sc h iz o p h r e n ic s and re p o r t r e s u l t s s im ila r t o th o s e found by G o ld ste in and S ch eerer fo r organic®*

Cameron ( 2 ) , how ever, found th a t

5 w ith adequate ra p p o rt aM co o p era tio n * h is s c h iz o p h r e n ic group could form a b s t r a c t co n ce p ts and s h i f t th e s e ©onc e p ts a s r e q u ir e d , so th e r e la t io n s h ip betw een s c h iz o ­ p hren ia and c o n c r e te n e s s of b eh a v io r rem ains u n s e tt le d # U sin g a d i f f e r e n t typ e o f group, Kounin (1 1 ) has dem onstrated t h a t feeb le -m in d e d p erso n s ten d to e x h ib it more r i g i d i t y i n a c a r d - s o r tin g t e s t o f con cept fo rm a tio n than do norm als o f th e same m en tal age# The t e s t s t y p i c a l l y used i n t h e s e c l i n i c a l s t u d ie s r e q u ir e th e s o r t in g o f some ty p e o f m a t e r ia ls on th e b a s is o f a co n ce p t w hich must be a b s tr a c te d from th© t o t a l c o l l e c t i o n o f s t im u li p resen te d #

For I n s t a n c e , G o ld s te in

and S ch a erer u s e ^ among o th e r t e s t s , a C olor S o r tin g T e s t , an O b je c t-S o r tin g T e s t , and th© WeigX O olo r-F o m S o r tin g T est#

T e s ts o f t h i s type a r e n o t co m p letely s u it a b le fo r

g e n e r a l t e s t i n g s i n c e some are to o d i f f i c u l t and some a re to o ea sy f o r normal s u b j e c t s and th e r e i s a la c k o f s a t i s ­ f a c t o r y norm ative d a ta f o r th e g e n e r a l p o p u la tio n * Grant and Berg ( 7 , 8

However,

) have d e v ise d a c a r d - s o r tin g t e s t

m od elled a f t e r th e W eigl w hich i s s u s c e p t ib le t o w ide V a r ia tio n s in d i f f i c u l t y and have c o l le c t e d data an t h i s new t e s t w hich in d ic a t e i t s s u i t a b i l i t y f o r u se w ith normal s u b je c ts *

A t e s t such a s t h i s m ight b© used t o study th e

r e la t io n s h ip o f c e r t a in g e n e r a l c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s o f b eh avior t o d if f e r e n c e s i n con cep t fo rm a tio n u s in g normal s u b je c ts #

6 I n o rd er to und erstan d w hich

p a r t ic u la r c h a r a c t e r is t ic s

a r e r e la t e d t o d if f e r e n c e s i n b eh a v io r on t h i s kind o f t e s t , i t i s n e c e s s a r y t o d e f in e th© p e r s o n a lit y c h a ra c te r­ i s t i c s in d e p e n d en tly o f th© t e a t s i t u a t i o n and th en stu d y th© r e la t io n s h ip o f t h e s e c h a r a c t e r ! s t ie s t o perform ance on th e t e s t * On© method o f d e f in in g a g e n e r a l p e r s o n a lit y c h a r a c t e r i s t i c w hich has been u sed s u c c e s s f u l l y by T aylor (1 7 ) i s to c o n s tr u c t a l i s t o f b eh a v io r item s Judged by expert© t o be in sta n ce® o f th e kind o f b eh avior t o be stu d ie d #

I t may than be assumed t h a t th o s e p erso n s

who in d i c a t e th a t t h e i r b eh a v io r i s c h a r a c te r is e d by a r e l a t i v e l y la r g e number o f such k in d s o f r i g i d , p e r s e v e r e tlv© r e s p o n s e s a r e more r i g id than peopl© who in d ic a t e t h a t t h e ir b eh a v io r i s c h a r a c te r iz e d by few er in s t a n c e s o f such re sp o n se s#

R ig id it y may thu s be o p e r a t io n a lly d e fin e d in

term s o f th e number o f in s t a n c e s o f r i g i d b eh a v io r t h a t an in d iv id u a l I n d i c a t e s , by means o f a paper and p e n c il ln v© n to ry # to be t y p i c a l

o f h is own b eh avior#

I n o rd er t o a s c r ib e v a ria tio n © i n b eh avior i n a g iv e n c l i n i c a l s i t u a t i o n t o a g iv e n p e r s o n a lit y ch a ra c te r­ i s t i c , i t i s n o t s u f f i c i e n t m erely t o show th a t th e r e i s a r e la t io n s h ip between them , i t i s a ls o n e c e s s a r y t o show \

t h a t th e kind o f b eh a v io r in v o lv ed could n ot r e a so n a b ly b© a t t r ib u t e d t o o th e r k in d s o f b eh a v io r te n d e n c ie s#

Thus,

7 o r g a n ic c a s e s may show poor con cep t fo rm a tio n and i t may be c o r r e c t t o a s c r ib e t h i s to r i g i d i t y #

However , s in c e

th e s e p a t ie n t s may p o s s e s s o th e r c h a r a c t e r is t ic s in common, some of t h e s e c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s m ight a l s o be a t l e a s t p a r t i a l l y r e s p o n s ib le f o r poor con cep t form ation* I t would be d e s i r a b l e , t h e r e f o r e , t o determ ine th e p o s s ib le e f f e c t on perform ance i n th e con cep t fo rm a tio n ta s k o f o th e r p e r s o n a lit y c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s t h a t m ight rea so n a b ly be e x p ec te d t o in flu e n c e such perform ance * S in c e m a n ife s t a n x ie ty has been d e fin e d by T aylor (1 7 ) i n term s o f a s c a le o f th e s o r t proposed fo r m easuring r i g i d i t y , and s in c e m a n ife s t a n x ie t y so d e fin e d h a s been found to be r e la t e d to b eh avior on v a rio u s ty p e s o f ta sk s (

I * , 15 ) , i t would seem to be o f v a lu e to in v e s t ! *

g a te any p o s s ib le r e la t io n s h ip between m a n ife s t a n x ie ty and con cep t form ation *

Thus, T aylor h as found th a t s u b j e c t s

s c o r in g h ig h on th e A n x ie ty Seal© show a s i g n i f i c a n t l y g r e a te r ©mount o f e y e lid c o n d itio n in g than s u b je c ts s c o r in g low on t h i s s c a le and Hosonbaum ( 15) has found th a t h ig h ly a n x io u s s u b j e c t s e x h ib it e d

s i g n i f i c a n t l y more stim u lu s

g e n e r a liz a t io n than do s u b j e c t s r e c e iv in g low s c o r e s on th e iu 3 x iety S ca le*

These r e s u l t s were p r e d ic te d by th©

i n v e s t i g a t o r s concerned on th e s u p p o s itio n th a t m a n ife s t a n x ie t y I n v o lv e s a s t a t e o f h eig h te n e d d r iv e and th e r e fo r e a f fe c t ® b eh a v io r in th e manner o f a d r iv e s t a t e , a s

8

in d ic a t e d by B xI V b b eh a v io r th e o r y ( 9 ) *

t h e r e f o r e , an

i n v e s t i g a t i o n o f th e p o s s i b l e r e la t io n s h ip between m a n ife s t a n x ie t y and co n cep t fo rm a tio n m ight have th e added vain® o f in d i c a t in g th e p o s s ib le r e la t io n s h ip o f m o t iv a t io n a l l e v e l t o con cep t fo rm a tio n b eh avior* A lthough i t i s p o s s ib le to p r e d ic t , on th e b a s is o f p r e v io u s ev id e n c e and l o g i c a l c o n s id e r a tio n s * t h a t sc o r e s on the r i g i d i t y s c a le would be in v e r s e ly r e la t e d to th e e f f i c i e n c y o f co n cep t fo r m a tio n , th ere i s no b a s is f o r p r e d ic t in g , in ad van ce, th© r e la t io n s h ip o f a n x ie ty t o t h i s b eh avior*

As a r e c e n t stu d y { 14) had in d ic a t e d , th©

e f f e c t o f a n x ie t y upon perform ance depends upon th© d i f f i c u l t y o f th® t a s k in v o lv e d

or more p r e c i s e l y ,

upon th e r e l a t i v e dominance of i n i t i a l c o r r e c t and in c o r r e c t r e sp o n se te n d e n c ie s *

I n th e ab sen ce o f h ig h ly d e t a ile d

in fo r m a tio n w ith r e s p e c t to t ills a s p e c t o f a g iv e n co n cep t fo rm a tio n t a s k , I t i s n o t p o s s ib le to p r e d ic t th e d ir e c t io n o f any a n x ie t y e f f e c t s t h a t may occur* S ta tem en t o f SSSSSS th® *53£55m*C Problem fh e purpose o f th® p r e s e n t i n v e s t ig a t io n was t o stu d y th® p o s s ib le in f lu e n c e of m a n ife s t r i g i d i t y , a s d e fin e d i n term s o f a paper and p e n c il q u e s tio n n a ir e , on con cep t fo rm a tio n *

In o rd er to do t h i s , a s c a le o f m a n ife s t

r i g i d i t y was c o n str u c te d a lo n g th® l i n e s fo llo w e d by

9 T aylor {I? } f o r th e c o n s tr u c tio n o f an A n x iety Beal© and th e r e la t io n s h ip was d eterm ined betw een sc o r e s on t h i s s c a le and perform ance on a ta s k in w hich s u c c e s s f u l perform ance r e q u ir e d o c c a s io n a l s h i f t s o f co n cep tu a l s e t , Th© co n cep t fo rm a tio n ta s k used Was a c a r d -s o r tin g s i t u a t i o n i n w hich s u b j e c t s were r e q u ir e d t o le a r n to s o r t the cards a c c o r d in g t o a c e r t a in cue - e i t h e r co lo r* number, or form t m t i l th e y reach ed a g iv e n c r i t e r i o n o f perform ance#

Then

th e b a s is f o r c o r r e c t s o r t in g wee changed w ith o u t warning so th a t s u b j e c t s w ere re q u ir ed to s h i f t t h e ir s e t and le a r n t o s o r t th e ca rd s a cco rd in g t o th© new cue*

T h is

p rocedu re was con tin u ed through th r e e s h i f t s i n s e t .

It

was p r e d ic te d t h a t th© h ig h ly r i g i d s u b j e c t s would tak e lo n g e r to le a r n t o s h i f t t h e i r s e t under th e s e c o n d itio n s than th e n o n - r ig id e u b ja e ts* A secon d purpose o f t h i s stu d y was t o determ ine th© r e la t io n s h ip betw een m a n ife s t r ig id ity and m a n ife st a n x ie t y In con cep t form ation*

Therefor® , ex p erim en ta l

s u b j e c t s w ere a l s o g iv e n an A n x iety B e a le and th e r e l a ­ t io n s h ip betw een s c o r e s on t h i s s c a le and r i g i d i t y o f con cep t fo rm a tio n was d eterm in ed .

In t h i s in s t a n c e , how ever,

th e p ro b a b le d i r e c t i o n o f th e r e la t io n s h ip , i f any, cou ld n o t b© s p e c if ie d #

10 Chapter I I

roiroiM T A L

moommm

1* P e r s o n a lit y M easu res* The p rocedu re f o r th e c o n s tr u c tio n o f th® H ig id it y S c a le fo llo w e d t h a t u sed by T aylor { ! ? ) *

M inety

I t e m t h a t w ere c o n sid e r e d d e s c r ip t i v e o f r i g id b eh avior w ere s e le c t e d from, v a r io u s paper and p e n c il p e r s o n a lit y t e s t s * s ta te m e n ts i n te x tb o o k s and c l i n i c a l o b se r v a tio n s* These w ere th e n g iv e n to f i v e c l i n i c a l p s y c h o lo g is t s ( t h r e e s t a f f members and two advanced graduate stu d e n ts in th e Departm ent o f P sych ology* S t a t e U n iv e r s it y o f Iowa) a lo n g w it h th e d e f i n i t i o n o f r i g i d i t y p resen te d In th e p r e v io u s ch ap ter*

(Be© I n s t r u c t io n s t o Judges In Appendix A*)

The ju d g es w ere asked to in d ic a t e w hich o f th e item s were in t h e i r o p in io n d e s c r ip t i o n s o f r i g id b eh a v io r, w hich were d e s c r ip t io n s o f n o n -r ig id b eh avior* and w hich were not r e la t e d t o r i g i d i t y a t a l l *

f i f t y Item s were d e sig n a te d

a s in s t a n c e s o f r i g i d b eh avior by a t l e a s t fo u r o f th© f i v e ju d g es and t h e s e item s w ere © elected f o r I n c lu s io n in th® H ig id it y S ca le *

I n a d d itio n * s ix t e e n ite m s from th© 1 P sych asth en ic Beal© o f th© M innesota M u ltlp h a sic P e r s o n a lit y 1* The f i l l e r item© were s e le c t e d from th e P sy c h a sth e n ic S c a le o f th e M innesota M u ltlp h a sic P e r s o n a lit y I n v e n to r y because I t was thought t h a t © cores on t h i s s c a l e m igh t p o s s ib ly be r e la t e d t o s c o r e s on th® H ig id it y S c a le *

11 In v e n to r y th a t had n o t been in c lu d e d In th e T a y lo r A n xiety S c a le w ere uaed a s f i l l e r it e m s , making a t o t a l o f 66 ite m s on th e t e s t #

The f i l l e r ite m s were n o t u sed in

com puting th e H ig id it y Boor© f o r p u rp oses o f th e p r e se n t study#

A copy o f th© t e s t i s in c lu d e d in Appendix B*

The r e v i s i o n o f th e T a y lo r A n x ie ty S c a le a s d e sc r ib e d by Rosenbaum (1 5 ) was used a s th e m easure o f m a n ife s t a n x iety # 2# S u b je c ts# Three g rou p s o f s u b j e c t s w ere s e le c t e d from under­ grad u ate c l a s s e s a t th© S ta te U n iv e r s ity o f Iowa on th© b a s is o f t h e i r s c o r e s on th© R ig id it y B e a le , th e R evised A n x ie ty B e a le , and th e X* B e a le o f th e M innesota M ultiplies!© P e r s o n a lit y In v en to r y #

Tim L B ea le i s on© o f th e s c a le s on

th© M u ltip h a s ic used t o in d ic a t e th e p r o b a b ilit y o f a s u b j e c t ’ s l y i n g on th e t e s t #

Th© R ig id it y B ea le was

a d m in iste r e d t o a p p ro x im a tely 500 stu d e n ts*

A standard group

o f 284 o f t h e s e s t u d e n t s , th e t o t a l number ta k in g the t e s t from th© in tr o d u c to r y p sy ch o lo g y c l a s s o f S p rin g , 1950, was u sed a s a b a s is f o r s e l e c t i n g th e s c o r e s by which s u b j e c t s w ere a s sig n e d to th© ex p erim en ta l groups#

The

d i s t r i b u t i o n o f R ig id it y s c o r e s o f th© standard group I s p r e se n te d I n Appendix 0#

The A n x ie ty S c a le s c o r e s used t o

assign s u b j e c t s to th© ex p erim en ta l groups vmve s e le c t e d on th e b a s is o f the s ta n d a r d iz a tio n group used f o r th© f i r s t

12 r e v i s i o n o f th e A n x iety S o u le , t h e in tr o d u c to r y p sych ology c l a s s o f F a l l , 1949*

The d i s t r i b u t i o n o f th© A n xiety Seal©

s c o r e s f o r th© s ta n d a r d iz a tio n group I s a ls o p resen ted In Appendix 0*

A s c o r e o f 7 or above on th e t seal© was

s u f f i c i e n t to e lim in a t e a s u b je c t from th© experim ent* T h is sc o r e corresp o n d s to a T s c o r e o f 60 in th e o r ig in a l n orm ative group f o r th© M innesota M u lti p h a sic P e r s o n a lit y I n v e n to r y . ©* B lffid Group. T h is group c o n s is t e d o f 21 s u b j e c t s sc o rin g 29 or more p o in t s (upper d e c i l e ) on th e R ig id it y S c a le , 17 p o in t s o r l e s s (b e lo w th e 60th p e r c e n t l i e ) on th e A n x ie ty S c a le * and l e s s th a n 7 p oint© on th© I* Seal©*

T h is group

was c o n sid er ed to be h ig h i n r i g i d i t y and low in a n x ie t y . b . A nxious Group ♦ T h is group c o n s is te d o f 21 s u b j e c ts s c o r in g 30 or more p o in t s (upper d e c i l e ) on th e A n x ie ty S cale* 22 p o in t s or l e s s (below th e m edian) on th e R ig id it y S c a le , and l e s s th an 7 p o in t s on th© 1 S c a le .

T h is group was

co n sid er ed to be h ig h in a n x ie ty and low i n r i g i d i t y . c . "ffpmaal” Group. T h is group c o n s is te d o f 30 s u b j e c ts sc o r in g 23 p o in t s or l e s s (b elow m edian) on th e R ig id it y S c a le , 15

13 p o in t s o r 1 m® {below m edian) on th© A n x iety Seal© and 1 ©so than 7 point© on th© L Seal®*

T h is group m s co n sid ered

n e it h e r r i g id n or an xious* 3 *. .Apparatus and, M a te r ia ls * The exp erim en t was conducted in a w e l l - l i g h t e d , r e l a t i v e l y q u ie t room*

Th© s u b je c t was se a te d in Trout

o f a b la c k sc r e e n w hich r e s t e d on a ta b le *

The Tour card-

s o r t in g com partm ents had s id e s and backs o f hardware c lo th and w ere p la c e d i n a r e c ta n g u la r opening in th e screen* Bach compartment m easured 5 in * in w id th , h e ig h t a n t depth* 'The c a r d - s o r tin g m a te r ia ls c o n s is te d o f 128 4 in* X 4 in* curds s im ila r to th o se d e sc r ib e d by Grant and Berg {?)» and co n ta in ed f ig u r e s v a ry in g w ith r e s p e c t to th r e e kinds o f cu es - number o f f i g u r e s , form , and co lo r* co n ta in ed o n e , tw o, t h r e e , or fo u r fig u r e s *

A g iv e n card Every f ig u r e

on ©aoh Card had th e saxae form , e i t h e r a c i r c l e , a c r o s s , a sq u a r e , o r a t r ia n g le *

Iv o r y f ig u r e on each card was o f

th e same c o l o r , e i t h e r r e d , g r e e n , y e llo w , o r blue* t h i s way 6 4 co m b in a tio n s were farmed*

In .

These com b ination s

were r e p e a te d f o r a n o th er s a t o f 6 4 cards th a t ca r r ie d in a d d it io n a a d o r e d border*

The b ord er, how ever, was not

used a s a d i f f e r e n t i a l cue in th e p r e s e n t experim ent* The card s w ere so r te d i n t o th e fo u r compartments on th e b a s is o f cue card s p la c e d above each compartment*

14 Th© fo u r eu© cards war© r e s p e c t iv e ly ?

on© b lu e t r i a n g l e ,

two red e i r e l e s , thro© y e llo w sq u ares* and fo u r green i

cro sses*

^h© cue ca rd s were n o t r e p e a te d among th e cards

t o be so rted * le a v in g 124 card s i n th e p a ck .

I f th®

s u b j e c t p la c e d th e card i n th e c o r r e c t compartment, a green j e w e l l i g h t mounted on th e s c r e e n to th© l e f t and above th© compartments was im m ed iately fla s h e d on by means o f a push b u tto n o p era ted m anually by th e 'ex p erim en ter* A red je w e l l i g h t mounted to th© r ig h t o f th e g reen l i g h t f la s h e d on im m ed ia tely I f th e s u b je c t p la ced th e card in th© wrong compartment* The ex p e r im e n te r , who op era ted th e l i g h t s from behind th© s c r e e n , could n o t be se e n by th e su b je c t*

The

s u b j e c t cou ld be s e e n by th© ex p er im en te r, however, by means o f a m irror arrangement*

a

?stand ard reco rd form was

u sed by th e ex p erim en ter t o record th© respons©©; i t I s reproduced i n Appendix B*

A reco rd was k ep t o f th© cue

a c c o rd in g t o w hich each card was so r te d *

Whenever o n ly

on© s tim u lu s a s p e c t o f th© so r te d card corresponded t o th o s e on th e cue c a r d , th© n atu re o f th e cue u sed was r e l a t i v e l y unam biguous.

I f more than on© a sp e c t o f th©

s o r te d card corresponded to the cue card s t im u li, a x m lt ip ie s c o r in g was n e c e ssa r y t o in d ic a t e th© p o s s ib le cues t h a t m ight have been used*

15 P ro c ed u r e« The in s t r u c t io n s to th e su b ject® a re p resen ted in Appendix K*

They in d ic a te d t h a t th e s u b j e c t s were to le a r n

t o s o r t th® cards in t o th e c o r r e c t compartment by u sin g th e cue card s a® t h e ir guide*

The s u b je c t so r te d th e *

ca rd s u n t i l he a ch ie v ed te n c o n s e c u tiv e c o r r e c t s o r tin g s ( t r i a l s ) In th e f i r s t s e r i e s , a s e r i e s b ein g d e fin e d a s any s e r i e s o f t r ia l® d u rin g which one p a r t ic u la r cue alw ays com prised th e c o r r e c t b a s is f o r s o r tin g *

A f t e r making te n

c o r r e c t s o r t in g s on th© b a s is o f th e f i r s t cu e, ©*g», number, a .d if f e r e n t c u e , e+g«* form* was a r b i t r a r i l y and w ith o u t w arning t o th e s u b je c t made th e c o r r e c t cu e, 2 r e q u ir in g a s h i f t in th© s u b j e c t* s co n cep tu a l s e t* A fte r t e n c o r r e c t s o r t in g s were mad© on th© b a s is o f th© second cu e, th© f i r s t c u e , ©*g*, number, was mad© th e c o r r e c t eu© w ith o u t w arn in g t o th© s u b j e c t , a g a in r e q u ir in g a s h i f t in c o n c e p tu a l s e t*

When te n c o r r e c t s o r t in g s had been

made on th© b a s is o f t h i s c u e , th e t h ir d rem aining sim p le c u e , e * g . , c o lo r , was mad© c o r r e c t In th© same f a s h io n , r e q u ir in g a th ir d s h i f t i n s e t by th e s u b j e c t .

The c o r r e c t

2* f i v e c o r r e c t t r i a l s w ere used a© th e c r i t e r i o n in the p r e lim in a r y in v e s t ig a t io n * I t was fo u n d , however, t h a t s u b j e c t s had g r e a t d i f f i c u l t y i n s h i f t i n g when f i v e c r i t e r i o n t r i a l s w ere u se d . A lso* many s u b j e c ts r e p o r te d t h a t th e y had n o t f e m u la t e d any d e f i n i t e co n cep t by w hich th ey w ere s o r t in g when o n ly f i v e t r i a l s w ere used*

16

b a s is {cu e) f o r s o r t in g was a s sig n e d t o th© fo u r s e r i e s in a m o d ifie d co u n terb a la n ced o r d e r , a s in d ic a te d in f a b le I ,

TAEL! X Order o f C o rrect Cues

S e r ie s S e r ie s S e r ie s S e r ie s

I II III IV

Order 1

Order 2

Order 3

C olor Humber C olor Form

Humber form Humber C olor

form Color form Humber

Each o rd er was a s s ig n e d e q u a lly o f t e n t o the s u b j e c ts In each group*

I t sh ou ld be noted t h a t S e r ie s 1 and S e r ie s

XIX alw a y s in v o lv e d th e same c o r r e c t cue*

S in c e th e re

w ere o n ly th r e e sim p le cu es t o be u sed , th e u se o f th e o n ly rem a in in g cue a s th© c o r r e c t one in S e r ie s XXX m ight h ave le d t o to o r a p id a s o lu t io n o f th e problem ; The s u b j e c t was n o t p erm itted to c o r r e c t h is s o r tin g one© th© card had been p la c e d in t o a compartment and th e s ig n a l I n d ic a t in g th a t th e resp o n se was r ig h t o r wrong had been g iv e n .

E xperim ental s e s s io n s v a ried l a

le n g th from a p p ro x im a tely 10 m inu tes t o ap proxim ately on© hour*

S u b je c ts who s o r te d 124 card s w ith o u t rea ch in g a

c r i t e r i o n i n th e f i r s t s e r i e s o r who s o r te d 372 card s with** ou t r e a c h in g th e fo u r th s e r i e s w ere d is c a r d e d .

Two

A nxious and two Hormal s u b j e c t s w ere d isc a r d e d by t h i s

c r i t e r i o n and t h e i r d ata wore n o t in c lu d e d i n th e r e s u lt o f t h i s study#

18 Chapter I I I RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

R elationship_o f th e Measures o f Manifest R igidity and Man jP © St. A nX j 8w]f i t i s p o s s ib le th a t th e d if f e r e n c e s between th® a n xiou s and r i g id s u b j e c t s i n p e r s e v e r a tio n on t h i s ta s k were due t o d i f f e r e n c e s in d riv e l e v e l i n t h e two g ro u p s, 1 * e * , th e a n x io u s group was o p e r a tin g on th© b a s is o f a h ig h e r d r iv e s t a t e th a n th© r i g i d group*

i f th® h ig h e r d r iv e s t a t e o f

th e a n x io u s group was th e fa c t o r c h i e f l y r e s p o n s ib le f o r

44 thasa differences in parformar.ee, then tba anxious group J

sh ou ld a l s o h a w d if f e r e d s i g n i f i c a n t l y from th e normal group* w hich was low in d r iv e le v e l*

However, th e

d if f e r e n c e s between the a n x io u s and normal groups were n o t s ig n if ic a n t *

A lso* th e r e i s no n e c e s s it y f o r su p p osin g

t h a t r i g i d i t y i s a s s o c ia t e d w ith a r e l a t i v e l y low d r iv e sta te * ;

In d e e d , i f r i g i d i t y r e p r e s e n ts a mechanism o f

d e fe n s e a g a in s t th e b a s ic d r iv e s t a t e o f a n x ie ty * than i t i s sym ptom atic o f a h ig h l e v e l o f d r iv e , J u st as m a n ife st a n x ie t y i s co n ceiv ed to be sym ptom atic o f an in te n s e b a s ic a n x ie t y s t a t e *

We pay su p p ose, th e n , t h a t th e a n x io u s and

r i g i d groups d id n o t d i f f e r in term s o f d r iv e , but th a t th e h a b it s a s s o c ia t e d w ith t h e b a sic a n x ie t y s t a t e a re d i f f e r e n t f o r th e two- groups*

'I n -o th e r words* r i g i d i t y o f b eh avior

may r e f l e c t th e p r esen ce o f a g e n e r a l h a b it ten dency and n ot low ered m o tiv a tio n *

fh e r e may toe re a so n to su p p o se,

in f a c t , t h a t under c e r t a in circu m sta n ce s, p e r s e v e r a tiv e b eh a v io r i s m ost l i k e l y t o occur under h ig h d riv e * S t i l l a n o th er e x p la n a tio n o f th e d if f e r e n c e s In th e r e s i s t a n c e to e x t in c t io n o f resp o n se s e t s fo r th e two groups m ight b© xoad© in term s of d i f f e r e n t i a l r a t e s o f developm ent of i n h i b i t i o n i n the two groups*

S in c e

e x t i n c t i o n i s brought a b o u t, a cco rd in g to B a ll ( 9 ) , by th e b u ild in g up o f i n h i b i t i o n , in d iv id u a l d if f e r e n c e s w ith r e s p e c t t o the developm ent of in h ib it o r y te n d e n c ie s m ight

45 be manifested in term s of d egree o f b e h a v io r a l r i g i d i t y . I n o rd er t o t e s t the t h e o r e t i c a l q u e s tio n s r a is e d by th e r e s u l t s o f t h is study*, i t would be n e c e ssa r y

to i n v e s t i g a t e th e perform ances o f a n x io u s and r ig id s u b j e c t s on.-other t a s k s in o th e r s it u a t io n s in v o lv in g th e m a n ip u la tio n o f f a c t o r s known t o be r e la t e d t o d r iv e s t a t e , h a b it s tr e n g th and in h ib it o r y p o t e n t ia l* I t i s im portant to n o te th a t alth o u g h th e r i g id and a n x io u s s u b j e c t s d i f f e r e d w ith r e s p e c t t o perform ance on t h is e x p e r im e n ta l t a s k , w hether or n ot th e y would a ls o d i f f e r w ith r e s p e c t to o th e r ■c l i n i c a l m easures o f concept fo rm a tio n 1 ® a t l e a s t p a r t ly an e m p ir ic a l q u estio n #

th e

c a r d ^ s o r tln g ta sk used in th e p r e s e n t stu d y d if f e r e d from th e t e s t s c u sto m a r ily used in the c l i n i c to stu d y r i g i d i t y o f con cep t fo rm a tio n i n s e v e r a l ways#

f i r s t , i t was

p o s s ib le to u se a r e l a t i v e l y la r g e number o f d i f f e r e n t c o n c e p tu a l b a ses f o r s o r tin g in th e p r e s e n t ta sk #

Although

t h i s i s tr u e o f some o f the c l i n i c a l t e a t s such a s th e V ig o tsk y , th e W eigl o f f e r s few er p o s s i b i l i t i e s , s in c e the cu es u sed v a ry o n ly in c o lo r and form#

S econ d ly th r e e

s h i f t s in s e t were req u ired on t h e ex p erim en ta l t a s k .

In

th e c a s e o f the W eig l, how ever, o n ly on© s h i f t in s e t i s ■custom arily demanded#

Sine® th e r e s u l t s o f th e p r e s e n t

stu d y in d ic a t e d t h a t th e differences between groups ten ded t o in c r e a s e w ith each a d d it io n a l s h i f t in s e t , i t i s

46

p o s s ib le th a t a t e s t r e q u ir in g s e v e r a l s h i f t s In s e t would be more s e n s i t i v e than one In which o n ly on© s h i f t In s e t i s demanded*

A t h ir d d if f e r e n c e l i e s In th e f a c t t h a t

in th e p r e s e n t e x p e r im e n ta l t a s k , th e s h i f t i n g o f s e t depends upon s e l f - i n s t r u c t i o n f o llo w in g th e s ig n a l th a t th e r e sp o n se s w ere I n c o r r e c t*

In many o f th e c l i n i c a l

t e s t s f o r p e r s e v e r a tio n o f co n ce p tu a l s e t , th e s u b je c t i s e x p l i c i t l y I n s tr u c te d by th e c l i n i c i a n to s h i f t h i s s e t , i*© », " fin d some o th e r way o f d oing i t * w I t I s p o s s ib le th a t th e e f f e c t s o f a n x ie t y and r i g i d i t y on perform ance on a co n cep t fo rm a tio n t a s k m ight change as a fu n c tio n o f th e d eg ree o f © x p llc itn © s s o f v e r b a l in s t r u c t io n s to s h i f t s e t*

47 C hapter XT

mmmt The purpose o f th e p r e se n t I n v e s t ig a t io n was t o stu d y th e r e la t io n s h ip o f th e g e n e r a l p e r s o n a lit y character** Is t i c s , m a n ife s t r i g i d i t y and m a n ife s t a n x ie ty * a s d e fin e d on th e b a s is o f paper and p e n c il q u e stio n n a ir e s* to a ta sk o f th e ty p e u sed in c l i n i c a l s t u d ie s o f p e r s e v e r a tio n o f c o n c e p tu a l se t*

I n g e n e r a l* r i g i d i t y was co n ceiv ed o f a s the

ten d en cy t o p e r s i s t In r e sp o n se s th a t may p r e v io u s ly have been s u it a b le i n some form er s it u a tio n * but th a t no lo n g er appear ad eq uate t o a c h ie v e cu rren t g o a ls or to s o lv e cu rren t prob­ lem s* a s c o n sid e r e d from th e p o in t o f view o f an ob server* I t was p r e d ic te d th a t in d iv id u a ls co n sid ered to be h igh In r i g i d i t y on th e b a s is o f h ig h s c o r e s on a R ig id it y S c a le would show more p e r s e v e r a tio n o f co n cep tu a l s e t than would I n d iv id u a ls s c o r in g low on th e R ig id it y S ca le *

Although i t

was r e a so n a b le to suppose th a t a h ig h sc o r e on a s c a le o f m a n ife s t a n x ie ty would be I n d ic a t iv e o f a h ig h d r iv e s t a t e , no p r e d ic t io n s cou ld b© made w ith r e s p e c t t o th e e f f e c t o f m a n ife s t a n x ie t y on perform ance i n th e ta s k u se d , in th e ab sen ce o f d e t a ile d in fo r m a tio n co n cern in g th e e x i s t i n g r esp o n se te n d e n c ie s a s s o c ia t e d w ith th a t task * A m o d if ic a tio n o f the T a y lo r A n x iety S c a le (1 7 ) was u sed a s th e m easure o f m a n ife s t a n x ie t y and a R ig id it y S c a le , c o n str u c te d i n a manner s im ila r to t h a t used by

T aylor f o r th e A n x iety S c a le , was used a s th e measure o f m a n ife s t r i g i d i t y *

Three groups o f s u b j e c ts were s e le c t e d

from t h e undergraduate c l a s s e s a t th e S ta te U n iv e r s ity o f Iowa on th e b a s is o f t h e i r s c o r e s on th e s e s c a le s s a R igid Group, c o n s is t in g o f 21 s u b j e c t s s c o r in g h ig h on th e R ig id it y Beal® and low on th e A n x iety Seal® ; an Anxious Goup, c o n s i s t i n g o f 21 s u b j e c ts s c o r in g h igh on th e A n xiety B e a le and low on th e R ig id it y B e a le ; and a wHormaLw Group, c o n s is t in g o f 30 s u b j e c t s sc o r in g low on both th e A n x ie ty and R ig id it y B eales*

The s u b j e c ts w ere asked to

s o r t cards on w hich w ere p r in te d f ig u r e s th a t v a ried w ith r e s p e c t to th r e e cu es - number o f f ig u r e s , form , and co lo r*

The s u b j e c t s so r te d the cards u n t i l th e y had

reached a perform ance c r i t e r i o n on th e cu® a r b it r a r ily chosen a s c o r r e c t by th e exp erim en ter and th en th e exp er­ im en ter s h if t e d th e cue t h a t was c o r r e c t w ith o u t warning to th e su b je c t*

The s u b je c t then was r e q u ir ed to so r t

a c c o r d in g to the new cue*

Three such s h i f t s In co n cep tu a l

s e t wore r e q u ir e d o f th e su b je c ts *

Th© number o f t r i a l s

to th© c r i t e r i o n and th e number o f p o rsev era tiv © r e sp o n se s w it h in each s e r i e s were used a s measure® o f r i g i d i t y in th© ta sk * R e s u lts w ere a s f o llo w s ;

1* Ho r e la t io n s h ip was

found betw een m a n ife s t a n x ie ty and m a n ife st r i g i d i t y a s d e fin e d by paper and p e n c il q u e stio n n a ir e s*

2# The R ig id ,

49 A nxious and Normal Groups d id n ot d i f f e r s i g n i f i c a n t l y in term s o f number o f t r i a l s t o reach th© c r i t e r i o n in B e r io s 1 , o r i g i n a l le a r n in g *

However, whoa in d iv id u a l d if f e r e n c e s

in o r i g i n a l le a r n in g were tak en in t o a c c o u n t, th© B ig id Group to o k s i g n i f i c a n t l y lo n g e r on subsequent s e r i e s to s h i f t i t s s e t and made s i g n i f i c a n t l y more p e r s e v e r a tiv e r e sp o n s e s than d id th e Normal Group#

3 * A lthough th©

A nxious Group showed c o n s is t e n t ly low er s c o r e s than th e Normal Group in number of t r i a l s taken t o s h i f t s e t and i n number o f p e r s e v e r a tiv e r e s p o n s e s , th e s e d if f e r e n c e s w ere n o t s t a t i s t i c a l l y s i g n i f i c a n t e x c ep t i n th® ©as© o f p e r s e v e r a tiv e r e s p o n s e s m S e r i e s I?#

4« ^he Anxious

and B ig id Groups d id n o t d i f f e r s i g n i f i c a n t l y i n number o f t r i a l s ta k en t o le a r n th e new s e t s In th© concept fo rm a tio n tusk#

However, th e A nxious Group improved

s ig n if ic a n t ly more th an th e B ig id Group from th© f i r s t s h i f t to th© l a s t s h i f t in term s o f c o r re cted t r ia l® to th e c r i t e r i o n and made few er

p e r s e v e r a tiv e re sp o n se s than

the B ig id Group# I t i s im portan t t o n o te th e n atu re o f th e r e la ­ t io n s h ip s e s t a b lis h e d by t h i s study*

fh e f a c t t h a t th©

B ig id Group d if f e r e d from th© o th er groups i s in te r p r e te d a s m eaning th a t th© kind o f b eh avior t h a t i s g e n e r a lly shown by B ig id s u b j e c t s , a s in d ic a te d by r e sp o n s e s to a w r itte n q u e s tio n n a ir e , was t r a n s fe r r e d t o th© c a r d -s o r tin g s it u a tio n *

50 In other words* a rsspbnoe^responso .law was e s t a b lis h e d . Among th e p o s s ib le e x p la n a tio n s o f th e d if f e r e n c e s found betw een th e A nxious and Rigid Groups i n p e r s e v e r a tio n o f re sp o n se s e t s a re s

F ir s t * s in c e th e r e i s rea so n to

su p p ose t h a t r e l a t i o n s h i p s betw een m a n ife s t a n x ie ty and o th e r v a r ia b le s a re e x p lic a b le in terras o f m o tiv a tio n a l f a c t o r s , I t i s p o s s ib le th a t th e d if f e r e n c e between t h i s

group and th e B ig id Group m j have been due to d if f e r e n c e s i n m o tiv a tio n *

.However, i f t h i s w ere tr u e , th # Anxious

Group sh ou ld have d if f e r e d s i g n i f i c a n t l y from th e Normal Group, a l s o , and t h i s was n o t th e c a s e i n tb e p r e se n t stu d y . S e c o n d ly , i t i s p o s s ib le th a t th e Anxious and B ig id Groups d if f e r e d w ith r e s p e c t t o th e h a b its a s s o c ia t e d w ith th e b a s ic a n x ie t y s t a t e f o r th e two groups*

I n o th e r w ord s,

r i g i d i t y o f b eh a v io r may r e f l e c t th© p r esen ce o f a g e n e r a l h a b it ten d en cy and n o t low ered m o tiv a t io n ,

fin a lly ,

a n oth er e x p la n a tio n o f th e d if f e r e n c e s in the r e s is t a n c e t o e x t in c t io n o f r e sp o n se s e t s f o r th© two groups m ight be mad© i n term s o f d i f f e r e n t i a l r a t e s o f developm ent o f i n h i b i t i o n i n th e two g ro u p s.

B@rg, B eta A. A sim p le o b j e c t iv e tech n iq u e fo r m easuring f l e x i b i l i t y i n th in k in g , *f. d en , P s y c h o l* . 194®, 3 9 , p p . 1 5 -2 2 . " T ‘" Cameron, Herman The f u n c t io n a l p s y c h o s e s , Oh. 29 i n B in t , «T, MeY#, P e r s o n a lity , and B ehavior D isord ears# New York's' ^ iie liin a ld 'P r e s s ', 1 9 4 4 . C a t t a i l , R# B# D e s c r ip tio n and Measurement o f P erg o m 1.1 t y » xonker^s^bn^udson7 New YorkiL W orm m o k 'Company, 1 9 4 6 # C a t t a i l , R, B* The r i d d le o f p e r s e v e r a tio n . I I i S o lu t io n i n term s of p e r s o n a lit y s t r u c t u r e . J* P e r s o n a l it y * 1 9 4 6 , 14* 239~o?. G o ld s te in , Kurt* ^Concerning r i g i d i t y . P a r s ,, 1942, 1 1 , p . 2 0 9 .

Char, and

G o ld s t e in , K# and S o h e ere r, M, A b str a ct and co n cr ete b eh aviors an ex p erim en ta l stu d y w ith s p e c ia l testa.# Pay oh. M.onog, , 1 9 4 1 1 5 3 , 1 -1 5 1 . 'G rant, David and B erg , 'Bata A b e h a v io r a l a n a ly s is o f d e g r e e o f rein fo rcem en t and e a s e o f s h if t ! n g t o new r e s p o n se s i n a W elg l-ty p e c a r d -s o r tin g problem* I . o f 33%pe,r. P s y c h o l , 9 194®, 3®, 4 0 4 -4 1 1 . G rant, D avid , J o n e s, 0 . R„, and T a l l a n t i s , B« The r e l a t i v e d i f f i c u l t y o f th e number, form and c o lo r co n c e p ts o f a W e ig l-ty p e problem . J# o f I x p e r . P s y c h o l* a 1949# 3 9 , 5 5 2 -5 5 7 . H u ll, C lark L* P r in c i p l e s o f B eh a v io r. A pp leton -C on tu ry 'd oS jin y , 1 1945’’#"""

New York:

Kasanln* J* and Hanfmann, E . D istu r b a n ce s in con cept fo rm a tio n in s c h iz o p h r e n ia . Arch# N eu ro l. P s y c h ia t r y . , 193®• 4 0 , 1276-12S57 K ounin, J . 3 , I n t e l l e c t u a l developm ent and r i g id i t y # Ch. 11 i n B arker, Kounin-and W right, C hild B ehavior and D evelopm ent, New York: McGrow H i l l and Company, 1943#

52

12.

X&&k©8 , W,

P e r s e v e r a t io n ,

B r i t , J , o f P s y c h o l, .

19X5» 7$ 397-419. 13*

Mann* H* B, and W hitney, D, Ke On a t e s t o f w hether one or two random v a r ia b le s s t o c h a s t i c a l l y la r g e r than th e o th e r , Ann, Math, S t a t i s t #, 1947* 2 $ , 5 0 - 6 0 ,

14#

Montagna, I , The r e la t io n s h ip o f a n x ie ty to r o te s e r i a l le a r n in g , Bnpub* PhJ>, t h e s i s , S ta te U n iv e r s it y o f Iowa*."

15.

Rosenbaum, 0 , S tim u lu s g e n e r a lis a t io n a s a fu n c tio n o f c l i n i c a l and e x p e r im e n ta lly induced a n x ie t y , Unpub, P h ,D , T h e s is , S ta t e U n iv e r s ity o f Iowa, 1930.

16 ,

Spearman, 0 , , The A b i lit ie s , o f Man, T heir Hature 'and MeasuremehtV 11'jfew x o r k V W c lir ila n '' baraxiaHyV 1927.

17,

T a y lo r, A, The r e la t io n s h ip o f a n x ie ty to th© c o n d itio n e d e y e lid resp o n se* Unpub, Ph,D» T h e s is , S ta t e U n iv e r s ity o f Iowa* 1949*

IB ,'

Thurston© , 1* 1* A f a c t o r i a l Study o f P e r c e p tio n , Chicago? U h iv © rsK y n'ffi1 Q h im g a

53

54 Chapter X XMTROB0OfXOH I n th e exp erim en t rep o r te d in th e fo r e g o in g s e c t io n i t was found th a t s u b j e c ts h ig h i n r i g id i t y # a s in d ic a te d by t h e ir s c o r e s on a paper and p e n c il in v en to ry # book lo n g e r t o s h i f t t h e ir co n ce p tu a l s e t s than s u b j e c ts h ig h i n m a n ife s t a n x ie t y , a s in d ic a te d by t h e ir s c o r e s on a paper and p e n c il In ven tory*

Among th e h y p o th eses th a t

could b© advanced to e x p la in th e d if f e r e n c e s i n perform ance was th e p o s s i b i l i t y t h a t th e two group© d if f e r e d w ith r e s p e c t t o s tr e n g th o f d riv e*

E vidence from o th er s t u d ie s

h as I n d ic a te d th a t h ig h m a n ife s t a n x ie ty i s in d ic a t iv e o f a h ig h driv© s ta te *

I f i t could be shown th a t an © x p eri-

m e n ta lly m an ip u lated in c r e a s e in d r iv e in normal s u b j e c ts would r e s u l t i n b eh a v io r more l i k e th a t o f th e a n x io u s s u b j e c t s than t h a t o f th e r i g id s u b j e c t s , th© m o tiv a tio n h y p o th e s is would be supported* One te ch n iq u e t h a t has fr e q u e n tly been used w ith human s u b j e c t s t o produce an In c r e a s e i n d riv e# i s th© a p p lic a t io n o f e l e c t r i c shock*

A lthough shock may be

regarded a© a s tr o n g d riv e -p ro d u c in g v a r ia b le , th© e x p e r i­ m en tal l i t e r a t u r e i s v er y f a r from c le a r co n cern in g the kind o f e f f e c t shock may be ex p ected to have upon human b eh a v io r i n a r e l a t i v e l y complex s it u a t io n *

Some

55 I n v e s tig a to r ® (

4

) have found th a t punishm ent le a d s

t o an In c r e a se d v a r i a b i l i t y o f response®

Thus, Thorndike

and h i s s tu d e n ts ( 4 ) have conducted a number o f e;&perim©ntal I n v e s t ig a t io n s in to th e e f f e c t s o f punishment fo llo w in g a r e sp o n se upon th e r e p e t i t io n o f th a t r e s p o n s e .

They

con clu d e from t h i s work th a t a lth o u g h punishm ent does n ot d i r e c t l y weaken a c o n n e c tio n , i t d oes Induce v a r i a b i l i t y o f b e h a v io r .

Berroad { 3 ) h as s tu d ie d th e e f f e c t s o f

v e r b a l punishm ent a s compared w ith e l e c t r i c shook f o llo w in g wrong r e s p o n s e s upon th e a b i l i t y o f s u b j e c ts t o s h i f t t h e ir re sp o n se s*

The r e s u l t s in d ic a te d some s l i g h t

ten d en cy f o r th® u se o f shock to f a c i l i t a t e th© a b i l i t y o f s u b j e c t s to s h i f t from one s e t o f r e sp o n se s t o another a lth o u g h th e d if f e r e n c e between th e c o n d itio n s was n ot s t a t i s t i c a l l y slg id fica n t#

The au th or concluded th a t

knowledge o f r e s u l t s was s u b s t a n t ia lly th© same f o r th e shocked and non-shooksd groups and th a t f a c t o r s o th e r than shock w ere r e l a t i v e l y more im portant in d eterm in in g v a r ia ­ t i o n s In perform ance* O ther in v e s t ig a t io n s have ta k en a d i f f e r e n t view o f th© e f f e c t s o f sh o ck .

P a tr ic k ( 2 ) , who s tu d ie d the

e f f e c t s o f punishm ent a d m in istered b efo re th® resp o n se in d r i n s o l u b l e problem s i t u a t i o n , found th a t punishment ten ded to ©voke p e r s i s t e n t , u n ad ap tlve r e s p o n s e s , I .© # , i t reduced r a th e r than In crea sed v a r i a b i l i t y .

Tolman, H a ll and

56

H r o tn a il ( 5 ) found t h a t a group th a t r e c e iv e d a h a ll p lu s a sh ock f o llo w in g a wrong re sp o n se le a rn ed more p o o rly than th© group r e c e iv in g a b e l l a lo n e fo llo w in g a wrong resp o n se#

th e y concluded t h a t th e shock serv ed a s an

e&pha&lger and h en ce tended to f i x a t e th® re sp o n se I t fo llo w e d #

Mar quart ( 1 } stu d ie d th e e f f e c t s o f shock

fo llo w in g 25 P©r c e n t o f th© r e s p o n s e s a s compared w ith shook fo llo w in g 75 p er cen t o f th e re sp o n se s in an in s o lu b le problem s i t u a t i o n on th© l a t e r le a r n in g o f a sim p le task *

She concluded th a t more co n cen tra ted p u n ish -

meat produced a s t a t e o f f r u s t r a t io n and th a t t h i s r e s u lte d i n p o o rer le a r n in g and reduced p l a s t i c i t y o f r e sp o n se . An a n a ly s is o f th e s t u d ie s u sin g shock a s a p u n ish in g a g e n t i n d i c a t e s a t l e a s t two d i f f e r e n t ways in w hich shock may o p e r a te . 1 When th© shock i s g iv e n f o llo w in g wrong r e s p o n s e s s a s in th e work o f Thorndike ( k )» Hexroad ( 3 ) , and Tolman, H a ll and B r s t n a ll ( 5 )# i t s e r v e s t o in form th e s u b j e c t a s t o th© c o r r e c tn e s s o f h i s r e sp o n se s in much the same way a s the © xperim enter1© s a y in g * "Wrong*** w o u ld .

A secon d f u n c tio n o f th e shook i s presum ably to

in c r e a s e drlv© l e v e l ,

In s t u d ie s such a s th o se by

P a tr ic k { 2 ) and Mar quart { 1 } * both o f whom used in ­ s o lu b le problem s i t u a t i o n s , th® shock d oes n o t se r v e to inform th e s u b j e c t a s to th e c o r r e c tn e s s o f h i s r e s p o n s e , 1

but d o es presum ably in crea s© h is d r iv e l e v e l .

Th©

57 d i f f e r e n e e s in © xp erim ental r e s u l t s th a t have been ob ta in ed from th© u se o f shook may be p a r t i a l l y ex p la in ed by th e d iffe r e n c e ® in th© purpose th© ©hook serve® i n each experim ent* Other f a c t o r s a ls o must be co n sid ered i n any p r e d ic t io n co n cern in g th e p o s s ib le e f f e c t s o f shock*

For