HEART-RATE COMPONENTS OF CONDITIONED VICARIOUS AUTONOMIC RESPONSES

Examined heart-rate and skin-resistance responses within a paradigm for the classical conditioning of vicariously instigated autonomic responses using electric shock to a model as the UCS. 56 undergraduate Os were assigned to 1 of 4 groups in which Ss either (1) anticipated going through the are task, (2) were assured that such would not be the case, (3) simply observed the model move, rather than be shocked, or (4) did not see the model move or be shocked. Results indicated that both GSR and heart rate could be conditioned. Observing the model being shocked or simply moving produced heart-rate deceleration of varying degrees of magnitude. (17 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved). © 1969 American Psychological Association.