An Evaluation of Trait, State, and Reaction Aspects of Activation Processes

Abstract

Psychophysiology is traditionally concerned with certain “indicators” of activation (arousal, stress‐strain). The experimental investigation of general mechanisms of activation should, therefore, be supplemented by evaluating the assessment and predictability of individual differences in trait, state, or reaction aspects of activation. Male students (N = 125) were examined under five conditions (rest, mental arithmetic, interview, anticipation, and blood taking) on one psychological and seven physiological criterion measures of activation state and reaction. Five variables are assumed to be adequate predictors of substantial criterion variance: questionnaire scores for emotional lability, reported frequency of somatic complaints, physical capacity (O₂ max during ergometer test), cardiorespiratory reactivity (during breathholding and cold pressor tests), and an explicit instructional set emphasizing or deemphasizing the importance of the experimental results. Statistical analysis by correlation and multiple regression procedures reveals that these dispositional variables fail to reliably predict individual differences in state and reaction parameters of activation processes.