I dont't think pedal braking is my dominant response. I've been using hand
brakes the majority of my life. That is why I was so surprised by my panic
reaction. I've made many more total stops via hand brake: hence it should
have higher habit strength and the arousal should have activated it. I'm
always disappointed when cherished psychological principles are violated.
That is what led to my state hypothesis.
Michael Quanty
Psychology Professor
CBMTS Project Director
Thomas Nelson Community College
P.O. Box 9407
Hampton, Virginia 23670
Voice: 757.825.3500
Fax: 757.825.3807
-----Original Message-----
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Sent: Tuesday, June 29, 1999 4:17 PM
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]; [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: Re: State-dependent learning
Quoting [EMAIL PROTECTED]:
> Since college in the late 60s I have ridden bikes with hand brakes. Yet
> today when I was riding on a nature trail near the college, with my hand
> resting on the brake I was startled by a squirrel and immediately tried to
> brake with the pedal. Earlier on the same ride i had slowed successfully
> for other squirrels that gave me more warning. My speculation is that
even
> though all of my recent experience has been using hand brakes, my
> experience with panic stops were in my wilder youthful days when I had
> pedal
> brakes.
> Is this the same as or similar to state-dependent learning ? Perhaps I am
> merely regressing.
>
> Michael Quanty
I wouldn't say state-dependent. It's probably an example of Zajonc's (1965)
(social) facilitation theory. When aroused, simple and well rehearsed and
dominant responses are more likely. Zajonc's theory meant to explain
_social_
faciliation: the presence of other people causes facilitation of simple
responses (making complex tasks harder) but his theory is that the social
effects as due to simple arousal. Under panic or crisis situations, it is
the
most rehearsed, and most strongly established responses that pop out. He
also
demonstrated "social" facilitation in the cockroach - perhaps showing that
it's a basic feature of our behavior and doesn't require much of a brain.
So,
the trick is to practice the response you want repeatedly until _it_ becomes
dominant. Because of this arousal effect, when I use cruise control I always
keep my right foot right above the accelerator, not the brake, because I
know if
I ever have to panic stop, the old response of lifting the foot, moving it
to
the left, and slamming down, will dominate.
Zajonc, R.B. (1965) Social facilitation. _Science_. 149, 269-274.
----------------------
John W. Kulig
Plymouth State College
Plymouth NH 03264 USA
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
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".... I was created in secret and curiously wrought in the lower parts of
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