KNOWLEDGE OF RESULTS

An individual is constantly interacting with and influenced by the environment. This

experience makes him to change or modify his behaviour in order to deal effectively with it.
Therefore, learning is a process by which experience produces a relatively enduring change in
an organism’s behavior or capabilities. Motor and verbal skills are not readily acquired unless
the subject has some knowledge of the results or information through feedback. Knowledge
of Results is knowledge about achieving the goal of the performance or externally presented
information about the outcome of performing a skill. In some situations, it describes
something about the performance outcomes and at other times it does not describe the
performance outcome, but simply tells the performer whether he or she has achieved the goal
of the performance. Performance curves for subjects with and without knowledge of results
usually shows marked difference in progress and greater informational feedback produces
more efficient performance. The improved performance associated with knowledge of results
may be attributed to three circumstances:
(a) Recitation of responses known to be successful
(b) Attempt to correct responses known to be inadequate, and,
(c) Enhanced motivation so that subjects find the task more interesting and try harder to
improve their performance, which requires constant feedbacks necessary to acquire a
skill

Problem: To measure the influence of knowledge of results on drawing 4-inch lines

Materials:

(1) Two response sheets

(2) Pencil and scale
(3) Blind fold goggles

Experimenter:
Name:

Subject:
Name:
Age:
Sex:
Plan of the experiment:

Ask the subject to draw 4-inch lines without knowledge of results first and with knowledge of
results after half an hour. The difference in quantity of error is due to the influence of
knowledge of results.

Procedure:

The subject is seated at a table and is given a pencil. A response sheet is placed before the
subject with the starting point directly in front of him. This position of the response sheet
with respect to the table edge is kept constant in all trials. Do not change the position of the
response sheet. Instruct the subject to draw a 4-inch horizontal line from the starting point of
the response sheet in front of him. The subject is then blind folded.

Condition A:
The subject is instructed as follows. “I shall help you to place the pencil at the starting point.
When I release your hand, saying start, draw a horizontal line that you judge to be 4-inch.
This is to be done free-handed. 3 trials will follow”. Give no information concerning the
accuracy of the drawings. During each trial, the response sheet is held in place and before
each trial it is moved enough so that the starting point is directly in front of the subject.
Condition B:
After half an hour interval, the above instructions are repeated and the following is added.
“When you finish each trial, I shall give you the following information. I will say “too short”
if the line more than half inch shorter than a 4-inch line, “little short” if the line is in between
3.5 and 4 inches, “a little long” if the line is in between 4 and 4.5 inch and “too long” if it is
more than 4.5 inch. If the line is exactly 4-inch, I will say “correct”. The response sheets are
prepared in advance to note these categories of responses without measuring each time. When
the data are collected, the errors committed by the subject are measured by the 25
experimental trials each under the two conditions.

Precautions:

1. Do not allow the subject to see the response sheet before or while doing the
experiment.
2. Keep the starting point always in front of the subject.
3. In condition A, do not give any clue regarding the error and in condition B, give the
knowledge of results in all the trials.
 4. Before starting the experiment, allow the subject to see a 4-inch line but not in the
response sheet.

Results:

Table indicates the errors committed by the subject in the different trials of condition A
(without knowledge of results) and condition B (with knowledge of results). The average
error in condition A is _______ and in condition B is ______. The response sheets are
attached here.

Discussion:

This experiment is conducted to measure the influence of knowledge of results in drawing a

4-inch line. The average error in condition A and B are ____ and ____ respectively. The
errors in condition ___ is greater/lesser _____ than condition ____. This shows that the
information feedback has/has not _____ affected on the performance level of the subject.

On the feedback situation, the subject is adjusting with respect to the responses given. In
condition A, few/more ____ errors are positive and have ___ correct responses. In condition
B, few/more ____ errors are positive and have ____ correct responses. In the case of the
subject, feedback information has/has no ____ (an) effect in decreasing the quantity of errors
and motivated/not motivated ____ the subject to perform better.

Conclusion:

Information feedback has/has no ___ effect on the performance level of the subject.

Reference:

Munn Norman L, Dodge, F. L., & Fernald Peter S. (1967). Introduction to Psychology.
Oxford and IBH publishing Co. pg:244.