PSYCHOLOGICAL EXPERIMENT

REPORT ON PSYCHOLOGICAL
EXPERIMENT

Name: MUHAIMANUL HOQUE FAHAD

HUMAN REACTION TO DIFFERENT TYPES OF

ABSTRACT
This report is a representation of the experiment conducted on a single independent subject to check the
response time taken by the individual to respond to emotional and neutral words. The goal of this
experiment is to prove the hypothesis that the response time for emotional words is higher than that of
neutral words. In this experiment, the dependent variable was the response time and the independent
variable was the subject. 30 words were read aloud to the subject of which 15 were emotional and the
other 15 were neutral words. The words were arranged in a haphazard manner and the subject was not
made aware of the type of words used. The results showed a significant increase in the response time for
emotional words than the neutral ones.
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Introduction
Sensation is a mental process resulting from the immediate external stimulation of a sense organ
often as distinguished from a conscious awareness of the sensory process. Perception is physical
sensation interpreted in the light of experience. The reaction time is the length of time taken for a
person or system to respond to a given stimulus or event. Human psychology dictates that people
are more prone to thinking for longer if a stimulus targets their emotions. Which means, the more
emotionally a person relates to a certain stimulus, the longer the reaction time or response is to
be processed within the brain of that person. However, it has to be noted that not every person
perceives words in the same manner. Some neutral words might be emotional for some and vice-
versa as the significance of words and emotions depend on the subject’s past experiences and
personality.

The experiment deals with a participant to measure the reaction times of the participant/subject
with regard to emotional and neutral words. The measurement of the reaction times was done
through a stopwatch. The subject was exposed to a range of words each being either an
emotional or neutral stimulus. Upon hearing the word, the subject had to respond with any word
that came to his mind. The time between the subjects hearing and reacting with another word
was measured as the reaction time.
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Method Section
Design

A single independent subject design was used in this experiment.

Participant

The participant is a 24-year-old male currently studying BBA in North South University.

Variables

• Dependent Variable: Reaction Time

Apparatus

The following apparatus were used in this experiment

• A list of 30 words of which 15 were emotional and 15 were neutral.

Procedure

The list of words was read aloud to the participant. The task of the participant was to say the
word that comes to mid immediately after hearing the word except its opposite. After the
experiment, the participant was asked to write a feedback on the overall environment of the
procedure. Finally, the participant was thanked for participating in the procedure.

Hypothesis
The reaction time taken to reply to emotional words is higher than that of neutral words.
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RESULT SELECTION
The reaction time taken to reply to emotional words is higher than that of neutral words. The
hypothesis was that the reaction time to the neutral world will be shorter than that of reaction
time of the emotional word. So, when I compare my hypothesis with the average time than I
found that my hypothesis is correct.
Procedure
The participant was told about the stimuli of words and that they should respond as quickly, but
as accurately, as possible. For each trial, the sequence of events was recorded.
The Participant was presented with a list of 30 words to become accustomed to the task.
Experimental trials were then presented in blocks with short rest periods in between. Each
experimental block was followed by a response word and reaction time. After the experiment,
participants gave us an overall feedback about their performance and the session as a whole. The
Results Table is given below:
Emotional Word
Sl. No. Stimulus Word Response Word Reaction Time (s)
1 Honeymoon Bali 4.30
2 Darling Love 4.19
3 Rage Anger 4.60
4 Dance Steps 1.34
5 Joy Happy 1.88
6 Song It’s my life 2.59
7 Flower Tulip 2.51
8 Mother Love 2.58
9 Death Afterlife 2.00
10 Eid/Puja Bonus 4.59
11 Independence Freedom 1.65
12 Kiss French 1.87
13 Hug Tight 2.75
14 Friend Brother 2.45
15 Love Girlfriend 3.17
Total Time Required 42.47 (s)
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Neutral Word
Sl. No. Stimulus Word Response Word Reaction Time (s)
1 Classroom Teachers 2.42
2 Chair Sitting 4.52
3 Watch Time 2.02
4 Book Study 2.02
5 Bag Books 2.67
6 Cupboard Cloths 3.69
7 Iron Hard 2.71
8 Paper Writing 1.85
9 House Relax 2.85
10 Night Dream 2.12
11 Suitcase Cloths 2.46
12 Umbrella Rain 2.28
13 Spectacles Eyesight 3.45
14 Pen Writing 1.56
15 Tree Fruits 1.43
Total Time Required 38.05 (s)

DISCUSSION SECTOION
The results obtained prove the hypothesis that the reaction time for emotional words is higher than
that of neutral words. The limitations for doing this experiment are that we have taken sample of
one NSU student. Therefore, it would be difficult to predict if the population or a larger sample
would provide different results. To overcome this, we can do the experiment on a larger number
or participants of different universities. The participant said his family lives in a different city and
he misses them all the time, so it might be the reason that the emotional words reaction time took
longer.

REFERENCES
Jaeger, A., Bourscheid, F., Santos, M. P. F., & Stein, L. M. (2017). Recognition of emotional
words: Response time effects of novelty. Psychology & Neuroscience, 10(2), 167-175.
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APPENDIX