Sixteen Experimental Investigations from the Harvard Psychological Laboratory by Hugo Münsterberg (100 books to read .txt) 📕

was much longer. Frequently, in such a case, the image was lost during

the last third or fifth of its journey. J. “felt conscious of a

something that went in the suggested direction but did not develop

details out of this material; had to await development of the image at

the new locality.” “At times forced this development out of the

vague something that seemed to go over.” G. had ‘no feeling of

transition in space.’ K. did not perceive the image in transitu. I.

perceived the image in transitu when the movement was away from the

center but when the image was to return to the center its passage was

too quick to be followed; ‘it came out at the center.’

J. noticed that in moving from the center the image took a curved path

towards himself, and that the position to which the image moved

always seemed further away than the position from which it came, but

the new position seemed to be readjusted when the next movement

occurred.

The return to the center seemed easier to all the subjects except G.,

who was conscious of no difference between the movements with respect

to ease. Several described the return to the center as like the return

of a small ball snapped back by a stretched elastic cord.

With D. a suggestion of weight in the perception of the object was a

hindrance to moving its memory image. Also the image of a short piece

of brass tubing persisted in rolling off the table and along the floor

and could not be held stationary. Other objects rotated rapidly, and

much effort was needed to ‘slow down’ the rotation and to bring the

objects to rest and keep them at rest.

II. CHANGES OF COLOR OF A SINGLE IMAGE.

Tables II. and III. show the results of experiments in changing the

color of a single image. This was usually a square, sometimes a disc.

The time of optical perception was five seconds. After the

disappearance of after-images, if there were any, eighteen to

twenty-four changes were made in the color of the memory image,

occupying from four and a half to six minutes.

The colors were saturated blue, green, yellow and red, and each one

was changed into each of the other colors and then restored. The order

of change was varied to avoid uniformity of succession. The four

colors were shown to the subjects each day before the experiments

began, to establish a standard. The time was taken with a stop-watch,

and includes the time between the director’s word of command, ‘green,’

etc., and the subject’s report, ‘now,’ or ‘green,’ etc. It includes,

therefore, two reaction times. The subject reported ‘now’ the instant

he secured the desired color, not waiting for the completion of the

shape that usually followed.

TABLE II.

CHANGES OF COLOR. SINGLE IMAGE. 72 CHANGES OF EACH COLOR.

[Label 1: Subject.]

[Label 2: To Green.]

[Label 3: Return to Blue.]

[Label 4: To Yellow.]

[Label 5: Return to Blue.]

[Label 6: To Red.]

[Label 7: Return to Blue.]

[Label 8: To Blue.]

[Label 9: Return to Green.]

[Label 10: To Yellow.]

[Label 11: Return to Green.]

[Label 12: To Red]

[Label 13: Return to Green.]

From Blue. From Green.

[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13]

B. 1.72 0.50 1.66 0.38 1.81 0.50 1.23 0.56 1.10 0.65 1.33 0.56

G. 1.15 0.60 1.10 0.79 0.89 0.65 1.75 0.87 1.04 0.75 1.35 0.71

H. 4.67 4.25 4.87 4.06 4.81 3.83 5.27 4.50 5.81 4.89 5.37 4.94

I. 2.27 1.25 1.77 1.19 1.83 1.25 2.15 0.93 1.71 1.04 1.92 1.15

J. 1.38 0.81 1.29 0.94 1.29 0.95 1.65 1.08 1.15 0.77 1.60 0.81

K. 2.35 1.71 1.96 1.66 2.10 1.19 2.25 1.25 2.17 1.73 2.44 1.27

Av. 2.26 1.52 2.11 1.50 2.15 1.39 2.41 1.53 2.15 1.65 2.34 1.57

[Label 1: Subject.]

[Label 2: To Blue.]

[Label 3: Return to Yellow.]

[Label 4: To Green.]

[Label 5: Return to Yellow.]

[Label 6: To Red.]

[Label 7: Return to Yellow.]

[Label 8: To Blue.]

[Label 9: Return to Red.]

[Label 10: To Green.]

[Label 11: Return to Red.]

[Label 12: To Yellow.]

[Label 13: Return to Red.]

From Yellow. From Red.

[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13]

B. 1.79 1.06 1.35 0.87 1.89 1.10 1.54 0.58 1.71 0.62 1.31 0.71

G. 1.50 1.10 1.48 0.87 1.31 0.88 1.33 0.92 1.35 0.91 0.77 0.58

H. 5.02 4.54 5.73 3.91 6.15 4.17 6.35 3.91 5.89 4.69 5.54 4.37

I. 2.29 1.31 2.54 1.19 2.29 1.27 2.85 1.10 2.50 1.21 1.65 1.31

J. 1.35 0.98 1.35 0.65 1.27 0.88 1.42 1.04 1.31 1.02 1.25 0.85

K. 3.02 1.52 3.21 2.04 2.23 1.79 2.54 1.56 2.66 1.60 2.88 1.81

Av. 2.49 1.76 2.61 1.59 2.52 1.68 2.67 1.51 2.57 1.68 2.23 1.62

TABLE III.

CHANGES TO THE FOUR COLORS.

Average time in seconds. 72 changes from and 72 changes to each color.

[Label 1: To Blue.]

[Label 2: Return from Blue.]

[Label 3: To Green.]

[Label 4: Return from Green.]

[Label 5: To Yellow.]

[Label 6: Return from Yellow.]

[Label 7: To Red.]

[Label 8: Return from Red.]

[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]

From blue, 2.26 1.52 2.11 1.50 2.12 1.39

” green, 2.38 1.53 2.16 1.64 2.33 1.57

” yellow, 2.49 1.75 2.61 1.59 2.52 1.68

” red, 2.67 1.52 2.58 1.68 2.27 1.62

Average, 2.52 1.60 2.48 1.59 2.17 1.58 2.33 1.55

Changes from a presented color. Returns to a presented color.

216 movements. 216 movements.

From presented yellow, 2.52 To presented yellow, 1.67

” ” red, 2.49 ” ” red, 1.61

” ” green, 2.29 ” ” green, 1.58

” ” blue, 2.16 ” ” blue, 1.47

Average, 2.37 Average, 1.58

Changes to a color from Returns from a color to

a presented color. a presented color.

216 movements. 216 movements.

To blue, 2.52 From blue, 1.60

” green, 2.48 ” green, 1.59

” red, 2.33 ” yellow, 1.58

” yellow, 2.17 ” red, 1.55

Average, 2.37 Average, 1.58

The six subjects fall into two groups—three, H., I., and K., taking

longer than the other three. As in the previous experiment H. was

markedly longer than any of the others.

There were seventeen hundred and twenty-eight changes in all,

including returns to the original color. There were two hundred and

sixteen changes from each of the four colors as presented, to each of

the other three and, of course, the same number of returns to the

presented color.

The change to blue from the other presented colors was the most

difficult and the change to yellow was the easiest.

The averages (216 exp. each) are,

Sec.

To blue, 2.55

” green, 2.48

” red, 2.33

” yellow, 2.17

The returns to the presented colors did not differ greatly from each

other, the averages (216 exp. each) being:

Sec.

From blue, 1.603

” green, 1.597

” yellow, 1.589

” red, 1.549

From red appears to be the easiest change, and from blue the hardest.

The getting away from a presented blue was the easiest and from a

presented yellow the most difficult, as seen by these averages (216

exp. each):

Sec.

From yellow, 2.54

” red, 2.49

” green, 2.29

” blue, 2.16

The returns to the presented colors show that it was hardest to get

back to the presented yellow, easiest to get back to the presented

blue, the averages (216 exp. each), being:

Sec.

To yellow, 1.67

” red, 1.61

” green, 1.58

” blue, 1.47

The facts as to blue and yellow shown by these four tables of averages

may be expressed also in this way:

If a blue square was shown, it was easier to change the blue memory

image into the other colors, and also easier to get back the blue

memory image after such changes, than if any other of the three colors

was presented.

If another color than blue was shown it was harder to change the

memory image of that color to blue than to any of the other colors,

and also harder to get back to the memory image of that color from

blue than from any of the other three colors.

If a yellow square was shown, it was harder to change the yellow

memory image into the other colors, and also harder to get back the

yellow memory image after such changes than if any other of the three

colors was presented.

If another color than yellow was shown, it was easier to change the

memory image of that color to yellow than to any of the three other

colors, and also easier to get back to the memory image of that color

from the yellow than from any of the other three colors except red.

If we combine all the changes into a color (both changes from

another presented color and returns to this color previously

presented) we find that changes to green are hardest, to yellow

easiest. The averages (for 432 exp. each) are,

Sec.

To green, 2.03

” blue, 1.99

” red, 1.97

” yellow, 1.92

The changes away from a color (both from this color previously

presented and from this color to the other previously presented

colors) show that it was hardest to get away from yellow, easiest to

get away from blue, the averages (for 432 exp. each) being:

Sec.

From yellow, 2.06

” red, 2.02

” green, 1.94

” blue, 1.88

As for the subjects, all six found yellow the easiest to change into,

one finding red equally easy.

SUBJECTIVE.

For seven of the subjects, mental repetition of the name of the color

(usually accompanied by articulatory movements) tended to bring up the

color, and one other subject occasionally used this method of bringing

about a change that was difficult. With D. the color did not come at

repetition of the name. G. was assisted by auditory recall of the

name. Nine subjects reported a feeling of strain, usually in the eyes

as of focusing, occurring especially when there seemed a difficulty in

producing the desired change. The tension attended almost exclusively

changes of the presented color, not restorations of that color. For D.

this strain was considerable, for G. there was also an after-feeling

of strain in the head. For G. the image was clearest when the feeling

of strain was least, and J. secured the promptest and clearest results

when he could most nearly rid himself of anxiety as to the result. K.

in one instance (a change from green to yellow) became conscious of

the setting of his jaws and motions of feet and body in aid of his

attempt. H. frequently had the feeling of physical fatigue.

In most cases the restoration of the presented color was as a complete

square, triangle, etc. In changes from the presented color the new

color appeared at a corner, or edge, or as a patch at the center. With

E. the “color flashed over the whole field and then had to be

restricted to the figure.” B. “held the outline, emptied of the old

color, while it was filled in with the new.” D. “had a clear outline,

and the new color came in small blotches inside, and effort spread

them out to cover the whole figure.” For I. the “new color came

sliding in from the right side over the old, which, however,

disappeared as if it were moving out of focus.” With A. the