Habituation of the orienting response as a function of individual differences in anxiety and autonomic lability.

Evaluated the role of individual differences in anxiety and autonomic lability on the habituation of GSR responses to auditory stimuli of moderate and very low intensity. 60 male undergraduate Ss were used. They were divided into high- and low-anxious groups on the basis of Taylor MA scale scores and high and low autonomic lability groups on the basis of spontaneous GSR activity during a rest period. No relationship between Taylor score and GSR habituation was obtained for either stimulus intensity. Autonomically labile Ss showed no habituation to the moderate tone, but did habituate to the low intensity tone. Autonomically stabile Ss habituated to both tones. It was concluded that individual differences in autonomic lability may predict whether an S will respond to moderate intensities with orienting or defensive reactions. (33 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)