REACTION TIME

PROBLEM STATEMENT:
To Assess the effect of practice on participants reaction time towards the visual
stimuli by using chronoscope.
VARIABLES
 Reaction time
 Practice Effect
INTRODUCTION
Reaction time refers to the interval between the presentation of a stimulus
and the initiation of a response. It's a measure of how quickly an individual can
process information, make a decision, and react to a stimulus. Reaction time is
influenced by various factors, including sensory perception, cognitive
processing, motor response, and individual differences
Simple Reaction Time is a fundamental measure in psychological testing that
assesses an individual's basic cognitive processing speed by measuring the time
taken to respond to a single, straightforward stimulus, such as a visual or
auditory signal, with a simple response like a button press, thereby providing
valuable insights into the efficiency of the nervous system, neural function,
attention, and alertness, while also reflecting the integrity and functioning of
sensory perception, motor response, and neural transmission, and serving as a
crucial indicator of cognitive processing speed.
The study of Simple Reaction Time began in the 19th century with Franciscus
Donders' groundbreaking research on response times to visual and auditory
stimuli. Since then, SRT has become a crucial tool in experimental psychology
and neuroscience, offering insights into cognitive processes, attention, and
neural function. Today SRT is applied in various fields, including clinical
assessments, cognitive research, and sports performance enhancement.

Simple Reaction Time: This type involves responding to a single stimulus, like
pressing a button when a light turns on. It's a straightforward reaction that
doesn't require much processing. For instance, a sprinter reacting to a starting
gunshot is a classic example of simple reaction time. This type of reaction time
is typically quick, taking around 0.13 to 0.18 seconds to respond to a stimulus.

TYPES OF REACTION TIMES

Choice Reaction Time (Complex Reaction Time): This type requires responding
to multiple stimuli and choosing the correct response. It's more complex and
slower than simple reaction time because the brain needs to process more
information. Examples include a driver reacting to different traffic lights or a
tennis player responding to a serve. Choice reaction time can be improved with
practice and training.

Discriminative Reaction Time: This type involves distinguishing between

different stimuli and responding accordingly. For example, a driver reacting
differently to a pedestrian versus a traffic light. This type of reaction time
requires the brain to process and interpret various stimuli, making it more
complex.

Mental and Physical Reaction Time: Mental reaction time refers to how
quickly we perceive something, while physical reaction time is how long it
takes to physically respond. Both are essential in sports and daily activities, and
can be improved through practice, exercise, and cognitive training

THEORIES OF REACTION TIME

Signal Detection Theory
Signal Detection Theory explains how individuals distinguish between signal
and noise in decision-making tasks. It provides insights into reaction time by
highlighting the role of sensitivity and bias in detecting stimuli.
Information Processing Theory
This theory views reaction time as a measure of the time it takes to process
information. It breaks down the process into stages, including stimulus
identification, response selection, and response execution.

Psychological Refractory Period (PRP)

The PRP theory suggests that there is a delay in processing a second stimulus
when it is presented shortly after the first stimulus. This delay affects reaction
time and is crucial in understanding dual-task interference.

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

A study conducted by N MISHRA et al (1985) on a comparative study of visual

and auditory reaction time of hands and feet in males and female.
He found out that both VRT and ART took more in the right hand side, males
responded faster than females. ART is slightly faster than VRT.

According to KARIA in his study effect of gender difference on visual reaction

time.
“A study on medical students of Bhavnagar region 2012,concluded that
reaction time is been less in boys than in girls

HYPOTHESIS
The more the practice one has in the respected domain the better is reaction
time.
METHODOLOGY
PARTICIPANT DETAILS
NAME: X
AGE:22
GENDER: Female
EDUCATION QUALIFICATION: PG Student

MATERIALS USED
1. Chronoscope
A chronoscope is an electrically operated timing instrument used to measure
short time intervals with high precision. Historically, it played a significant role
in psychological research, particularly in reaction time studies. By accurately
measuring the duration between a stimulus and a response, chronoscopes
helped researchers understand cognitive processes, neural function, and
human performance. Although largely replaced by modern digital
technologies, chronoscopes remain an important part of the history of
experimental psychology, contributing to our understanding of human reaction
times and cognitive functions.

2. Writing materials

PROCEDURE
The participant is seated comfortably infront of the apparatus and a good
rapport was established, then the followed instructions were given “you have
got different colour button here all you have to do is as soon as you seen a
colour button lightening up press the button as quickly as you can”
Participants are also said to press buzzer sound button if they hear buzzer
sound. The time taken to react to stimulus is recorded in millisecond.
As soon as the participant pressed the button, note the time recorded on
chronoscope.
PRECAUTION
1) Before switching on the light every time, a ready siginal has to given.
2) Give few trials before starting experimemt
3) Make sure the participant does not know the colour sequence before
the experiment.

RESULT

Table 1: Average Reaction Time of Participants at Different Levels of Practice

Catergories of Trial Reaction time Average reaction

practice time of
participants
Less practice 1 0.04
2 0.03 0.03
3 0.03
Average practice 4 0.03
5 0.02 0.02
6 0.03
High practice 7 0.03
8 0.02 0.02
9 0.03
10 0.03

Table 1 shows less practice category from trial 1 to 3 average reaction time of
the participant is 0.03, average practice category from 4 to 6 average reaction
time is 0.02 and in high practice category from 7 to 10 average reaction time is
0.02.
 HIGH PRACTICE AVERAGE PRACTICE LESS PRACTICE

AVERAGE REACTION TIME

0 0.005 0.01 0.015

FIG.1 AVERAGE REACTION TIME OF 0.02 0.025
PARTICIPANTS 0.03
AT 0.035

DIFFERENT LEVELS OF PRACTICE

DISCUSSION

The study aims to assess the effect of practice on participants reaction time
towards the visual stimuli using chronoscope.
Reaction time refers to the interval between the presentation of a stimulus
and the initiation of a response.

The results, presented in Table 1 and Figure 2, show that reaction times
decrease as practice levels increase, from the 1st to the 10th trial. The
hypothesis is supported, indicating a significant practice effect where repeated
exposure to the task leads to faster responses and improved speed and
efficiency.
REFERANCE
Ando, S., Kida, N., & Oda, S. (2002). Practice effects on reaction time for
peripheral and central visual fields. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 95(3), 747-
754. doi: 10.2466/pms.2002.95.3.747
Haith, A. M. (study author). Does practice decrease reaction time?.
WisdomAnswer.