Abstract
Previous research established both delay and intermittency of feedback as two major sources of temporal perturbation in a compensatory tracking task. Tracking accuracy decreased as a function of an increase in both feedback conditions. Also, disruption of both types of feedback showed similar deterioration of the task as observed in separate studies. The present study was designed to compare effects of differential severity of delay and intermirtency of feedback on identical magnitudes of temporal perturbation on a compensatory tracking task. Time intervals of 0.0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8, 1.0, and 1.5 sec. were used for both conditions. After 10 trials at 0.0 sec. as practice, each subject was tested under each of the perturbation conditions with 6 trials for each of the 6 intervals, making a total of 12 experimental trials. Delay of feedback affected tracking significantly more than intermittency of feedback at all magnitudes. Normal feedback of zero perturbation was the best condition for task performance. In both feedback conditions, tracking deteriorated as a function of increased magnitudes of disruption of feedback. Learning occurred in the two experimental conditions but not in the condition of normal feedback.