Abstract
Pupillary responses (PR) and galvanic skin responses (GSR) were continuously monitored while Ss attempted to generate images suggested by both concrete and abstract words. Ss were required to press a key when an image occurred or at the end of the “image” period if they were unable to generate an image. The results showed a significant difference between concrete and abstract nouns with regard to pupil size, time to maximum pupil size, time to maximum GSR, and key-press latency. These results suggest that the pupillary response, especially its latency, may be a more sensitive peripheral response than GSR during cognitive tasks.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
BERRY, R. N. Skin conductance levels and verbal recall. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 1962a, 63, 275–277.
BERRY, R. N. Task difficulty, performance and skin conductance. Perceptual & Motor Skills, 1962b, 15, 474–477.
DAVIS, R. C. Modification of the galvanic reflex by daily repetition of a stimulus. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 1934, 17, 504–535.
HESS, E. H. Attitude and pupil size. Scientific American, 1965, 212, 46–54.
HESS, E. H., & POLT, J. M. Pupil size in relation to mental activity during simple problem solving. Science, 1964, 143, 1190–1192.
KAHNEMAN, D., & BEATTY, J. Pupil diameter and load on memory. Science, 1966, 154, 1583–1585.
KLING, J. W., & SCHLOSBERG, H. Relation of skin conductance and rotary pursuit during extended practise. Perceptual & Motor Skills, 1961, 12, 270–275.
PAIVIO, A. Latency of verbal associations and imagery to noun stimuli as a function of abstractness and generality. Canadian Journal of Psychology, 1966, 20, 378–387.
PAIVIO, A., & SIMPSON, H. M. The effect of word abstractness and pleasantness on pupil size during an imagery task. Psychonomic Science, 1966, 5, 55–56.
PAIVIO, A., & SIMPSON, H. M. Magnitude and latency of the pupillary response during an imagery task as a function of stimulus abstractness and imagery ability. Psychonomic Science, 1968, 12, 45–46.
PAIVIO, A., YUILLE, J. C., & MADIGAN, S. A. Concreteness, imagery, and meaningfulness values of 925 nouns. Journal of Experimental Psychology Monograph Supplement, 1968, 76, No. 1.
SILVERMAN, S. J., COHEN, S. I., & SCHMAVONIAN, B. M. Investigation of psychophysiologic relationships with skin resistance measures. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 1959, 4, 65–87.
SIMPSON, H. M., MOLLOY, F. M., HALE, S. H., & CLIMAN, M. H. Latency and magnitude of the pupillary response during an imagery task. Psychonomic Science, 1968, 13, 293–294.
YUILLE, J. C., & PAIVIO, A. Latency of imaginal and verbal mediators as a function of stimulus and response concreteness-imagery. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 1967, 75, 540–544.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
This research was supported by Grants APA-304 (to the first author) and APA-87 (to the second author) from the National Research Council of Canada, and a grant from the University of Western Ontario Research Fund.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Colman, F.D., Paivio, A. Pupillary response and galvanic skin response during an imagery task. Psychon Sci 16, 296–297 (1969). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03332696
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03332696