Individual differences in physiological reactions to stimulation and their relation to other measures of emotionality.

Abstract

24 [male] college students were subjected several times to each of 4 displacing stimulus situations. In addition every S filled out a battery of pencil and paper tests, was rated by trained clinicians on emotionality, and had a time sample taken of his nervous movements during a classroom situation. Thirty variables resulted from the study. A factorial analysis of these variables yielded 3 orthogonal factors. Two of these have been tentatively identified as (1) control of the expression of energy, and (2) physiological arousal to stimulation. The third (3) has a large factor of self-rated emotionality and is apparently not related to behavior produced by the displacing situations. The present status of the use of physiological measures of personality differentiation does not justify the drawing of any final conclusions; however, the results of this study do point in the direction of a fruitful field for future research.