Differences Among Age and Sex Groups in Electrodermal Conditioning

Abstract

Four groups, Young Males, Young Females, Aged Males and Aged Females, were run in a discrimination conditioning paradigm with a variety of autonomic and central measures. This paper deals primarily with Electro-Dermal Responses. The findings indicate that in all measures the Young Males and Young Females show the best discriminated conditioning, followed by Aged Females and AgedMales.In the GSP there are hints that the negative wave of the response might be related to the orienting phenomena whereas the positive wave is what becomes discriminately conditioned in the experiment.

Electrodermal Activity

“…This may be partly due to pronounced age-related changes in the hypothalamus (Andrew & Winston-Salem, 1966), leading to additional differences in the central triggering of ANS reactions which may interact with peripheral physiological differences of old as compared to young individuals (Edelberg, 1971). Botwinick and Kornetsky (1960), Shmavonian, Yarmat, and Cohen (1965), and Shmavonian, Miller, and Cohen (1968) obtained a decrease of electrodermal reactivity during classical conditioning (Sect. 3.1.2.1) with elderly individuals.…”

“…3.1.1.3) were observed by Catania et al (1980). These authors claim that the method of recording might account for the failure to obtain age differences in phasic EDA, since studies having used constant current (e.g., Botwinick & Kornetsky, 1960;Shmavonian et al, 1965Shmavonian et al, , 1968) obtained differences, whereas other studies using constant voltage (e.g., Eisdorfer, 1978;Catania et al, 1980) did not. Such an effect could have been due to the susceptibility of the constant current method to the decrease of the number of active sweat glands (Sect.…”

Autonomic changes following generalized tonic clonic seizures: An analysis of adult and pediatric patients with epilepsy

“…The age-related differences in EDA responses could be due to both peripheral and central autonomic changes. Experimental paradigms using conditional stimuli reveal decreased sympathetic reactivity with age (Shmavonian et al, 1968). Changes in the hypothalamus (Andrew, 1956) occur with age, while the number (Balin and Pratt, 1989) and output (Silver et al, 1965) of active eccrine sweat glands decreases with age, although the mentioned studies were cross-sectional in nature and the comparisons involved patients over age 40 while the majority of our patients were 10-35 years old.…”

Mechanisms, Instrumentation, Recording Techniques, and Quantification of Responses

“…There is, however, as Brown (1966) suggests, little known about possible age differences in the emotional response to being a subject or experiencing experimental stress (Back & Bogdonoff, 1967). Some work has been undertaken to investigate age differences in electrodermal phenomena per se, notably from Surwillo (1965Surwillo ( , 1969, Surwillo, and Quilter (1965), Shmavonian, Yarmat, and Cohen (1965), Shmavonian, Miller, and Cohen (1968), and their co-workers.…”

“…There are, however, a number of relevant studies where comparisons have been made between electrodermal activity in male and female subjects. Shmavonian et al (1965Shmavonian et al ( , 1968 reported sex differences in SCR conditioning, with males showing more rapid conditioning, slower extinction, and lower amplitude responses. Their introductory section includes a useful review of earlier work on sex differences in SC, and Kopacz and Smith conclude with a discussion of the possible significance of Broverman, Klaiber, Kobayashi, and Vogel (1968); these workers had suggested that a behaviorally relevant physiological sex difference of major significance could be the more potent activating effect of estrogen as compared with androgen.…”