Arousal response predictions derived from ego psychology.

The purpose of this study was to examine the prediction from ego psychology that excessive stress leads to either a struggling or distancing response. Male subjects, preselected on the R-S scale, were exposed to an explicit pornographic movie in the presence of a female confederate. Skin conductance levels, self-report data, and a work association test with double entendre words were the dependent measures. The results indicated that subjects struggle rather than distance themselves when confronted with apparently stressful stimuli.