The purpose in the present study was to examine the effects of hemispheric load on dual and triple task performance and learning. Interference due to hemispheric load was proposed to be a function of the mutual contamination between two patterns of neural activity in the cerebral hemispheres (Kinsbourne & Hicks, 1978). / Hemispheric load was manipulated in the present study by varying verbal and motor tasks known to activate particular cerebral hemispheres. Under dual and triple task conditions, attempts were made to load the left hemisphere, theoretically inducing increased right foot reaction times (RT) and errors. Additionally, it was hypothesized that right and left foot differences would diminish across days due to the formation of inhibitory barriers which would prevent cross-talk. / Right-handed male subjects (N = 12) reacted to one of two auditory tones with either the right foot or left foot (simple and choice RT) under single task conditions. A tracking task (right hand) was added to the RT testing situation to constitute dual task conditions. Triple task conditions involved the additional simultaneous performance of a verbal (counting) task. Subjects performed all conditions over three consecutive days. / Results of the RT analysis confirmed a general learning effect and a task complexity effect but did not corroborate the hypothesized differences between left and right foot RT's. Error data analysis, however, revealed significant left and right foot differences, in addition to the general learning and task complexity effects. Right foot errors were in the majority under dual and triple task conditions. Furthermore, right and left foot differences decreased across days according to learning predictions. Thus, interference appeared to be a function of hemispheric load, seemingly reflecting increased conflict between patterns of neural activity in the cerebral hemispheres. The results supported the theoretical tenets proposed by Kinsbourne and Hicks. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 43-11, Section: A, page: 3547. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1982.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_74967 |
| Contributors | MCCOLSKEY, ANNE MARTINDALE., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 140 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
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