The relation of overt muscular discharge to physiological recovery from experimentally induced displacement.

Abstract

Twenty-four men were subjected to 4 types of displacing stimulation (pistol shot, motor conflict, personal questions, sensory discrimination). Records of palmar skin resistance and movements of the air mattress on which the subject lay were obtained before, during, and after each test. Rate of physiological recovery (indicated by rising skin resistance) following cessation of stimulation was, in general, positively correlated with amt. of air displacement caused by movements made during and following the exptl. frustration. Subjects with long physiological recovery times often showed more overt movements under basal rest than during the test itself. Less neurotic subjects lay relatively still during basal rest, but were less inhibited in immediate overt discharge of aroused tensions during and after stimulation.