Emotional facilitation of concept-formation and memory

Date

1953

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Abstract

The present study was concerned with demonstrating a parameter of the hypothetical construct emotion, as it affects conceptformation and memory. The two specific hypotheses tested were: (1) When the parts or elements of a concept are emotionally toned, the concept will be established more rapidly and will be more stable. Furthermore this effect will override differences in the learning material itself; and (2) the emotional value of a concept will carry over to new associations. When an emotionally toned concept is associated with new words, these words will be better remembered than neutral ones. Emotion was operationally defined in terms of (1) the stimulus conditions -- a mild electric shock; and (2) independent criteria of emotional expression -- physiological changes in psychogalvanic skin response, blood pressure, pulse rate, and an inspiration/expiration respiration ratio. The concept-formation task used was the one devised by Hull. It included twelve groups of Chinese characters arranged in twelve series. Each group had identical elements or residuals embedded in the more complex figures throughout the twelve series. The radicals were identified by nonsense syllables or concept-names. Concepts were evolved when the radicals, regardless of their embedded figures, were identified by the associated concept-names. The three scores used as measures of learning were: (1) Errors— the total number of errors made in the twelve series; (2) Trials Per Series —< the number of trials needed in each series before a criterion of two successive trials without an error was reached; and (3) Trials For Concept — the number of trials after which no more errors were made in succeeding series; that is, the point at which a concept was formed. The twelve nonsense syllables from the concept-formation task, together with eight new syllables, were presented in a standard word association procedure. The subjects were requested to give the first meaningful word that came to mind for each syllable. Memory for these associated words was tested immediately and after a 48-hour period. The two methods used were free and controlled recall. In the experimental design, twenty-four male undergraduate students were divided into two matched groups, X and Y, Group X was shocked on four concepts and Group Y on four different concepts during Series I, III, TV and VI. Beginning with Series VII no more shock was used. Continuous polygraphic recordings were taken during Series TV, V, VI, X, XI, XII and the wordassociation task. The analysis of variance technique was used to test the reliability of mean differences between the controls. Shock Groups X and Y, Non-Shock Groups X and Y, and between the Combined Shock Groups and each of the Non-Shock Groups on the three learning scores. On the four memory scores comparisons were also made with New Learning Groups X and Y. The following results were found on the learning scores: (1) Consistent and significant emotional facilitation of concept-formation in terms of a 37 percent decrease in the number of errors made; a 27 percent decrease in the number of trials needed to reach a criterion at each stage in the learning process; and a 21 percent decrease in the number of trials needed to establish the concept. (2) Reliable differences in learning scores due to the learning material itself in the Non-Shock Groups which were reduced to chance variations in the Shock Groups. (3) Consistently reliable differences between individuals in the ability to form concepts. The following results were found on the memory scores: (1) Consistent and significant emotional facilitation of memory for associated words in terms of a 52 percent increase in immediate free recall and a 13 percent increase in controlled recall; a 55 percent increase in 48 hour free recall and a 28 percent increase in controlled recall. (2) In comparison with the New Learning Groups there was a 72 percent increase in immediate free recall and a 20 percent increase in controlled recall; a 71 percent increase in 48 hour free recall and a 42 percent increase in controlled recall. (3) After 48 hours there was an increase on controlled recall for the shocked groups as compared with a decrease for the non-shocked and new learning groups. (4) Consistently reliable differences between the two methods of measuring recall, free and controlled. The data on the criterion measures demonstrated: (1) Consistent and significant differences between the shock and non-shock stimulus conditions in terms of increased psychogalvanic skin response, blood pressure, pulse rate, and inspiration/ expiration respiration ratio. (2) There was a generalization of this heightened autonomic expression to the non-shock trials on the concept-formation task. (3) The autonomic expression as an index of emotion was also generalized to the word association task. These results demonstrate that one parameter of emotion is the significant facilitation of complex learning processes. Emotional states of low intensity lead to organized adaptive behavior. The hypothetical construct of emotion was discussed in terms of the underlying physiological system, its relationship to the concept of attention, and the behavioral changes resulting from the interaction of different degrees of emotion and task difficulty.

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Keywords

Concepts, Memory

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