Often the simplicity or complication of the stimulus may be decisive
in importance, and this also holds true where the most elementary
reactions are involved, for instance, the mere act of counting which
enters into many industrial functions. Experiments carried on in my
laboratory[31] have shown that the time needed to count a certain
number of units becomes longer as soon as the units themselves become
more complicated. Their inner manifoldness exerts a retarding
influence on the eye as it moves from one figure to another. A certain
psychical inhibition arises; the mind is held back by the complexity
of the impression and cannot proceed quickly enough to the next.
Psychologically no less important is the demand that the external
technical conditions so far as they influence consciousness, should
remain as far as possible the same, if the same psychical effect is
desired, because then only can a perfectly firm connection between
stimulus and movement be formed. In technical life this demand is much
sinned against. A typical case is that of the signals for which the
engineer on the locomotive has to watch. In the daytime the movable
arms of the semaphore indicate by their horizontal, oblique, or
vertical position whether the tracks are clear. At night-time, on the
other hand, the same information reaches him by the different colors
of the signal lanterns. From a psychical point of view it is probable
that the safety of the service would be increased if an unchangeable
connection between signal and movement were formed.
Pages:
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154