Cutaneous sensitivity during prolonged visual deprivation: role of interpolated testing.

Abstract

Measures of pain and pressure sensitivity were administered to 14 experimental Ss at intervals of 0, 3, and 7 days of visual deprivation. Relative to 14 control Ss, a significant increase in sensitivity was observed on both measures and at both Day 3 and Day 7. Since previous research has shown that negative results are obtained when the same sensory tasks are presented at intervals of 0, 1/2, 1, 2, 3, 5, and 7 days of visual deprivation, it was concluded that a confounding effect may occur in sensory restriction experiments if the repeated measures of cutaneous sensitivity are not separated by inter-test intervals of at least several days.