General arousal and performance.

The effect of different levels of arousal on performance (of perception and of learning) was studied in 28 subjects, both men and women whose ages ranged from 17 to 25 yr. The tasks were two tactile discrimination tests, one which required learning and memorizing and the other one visual discrimination. The latter test has been used as an interference task in learning and memorizing. Results suggest the fundamental role of general arousal in determining good performance. Tactile perception and visual discrimination under high arousal have been better than those in a relaxed condition, the disturbing task interfered more with performance under a relaxed condition than with that under high arousal.