Schedule-induced electrodermal responding in children.
The current studies were designed to determine whether different intermittent schedules of reinforcement would have a differential effect on the skin conductance responses (SCRs) of children in the 8-12-year-old age range. Results of two experiments indicated that the amplitude of children's SCRs immediately following the occurrence of reinforcement were a function of the schedule of reinforcement, with larger SCRs associated with longer inter-reinforcement intervals. The findings are consistent with the research literature suggesting that long inter-reinforcement intervals can be evocative of aversively motivated emotions, as well as with research on the effects of interstimulus intervals on SCRs. Possible implications for these findings are discussed.
Latzman
Robert D
RD
Department of Psychology, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA.
Knutson
John F
JF
Fowles
Don C
DC
D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D005712:Galvanic Skin Response / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012055:Reinforcement Schedule; D013997:Time Factors