Incentive value of success and instrumental approach behavior.

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Abstract
The effect of incentive value of success on the instrumental approach speed of 36 human Ss was studied under conditions designed to make explicit verbal control of the response unlikely. S''s reaching response was timed on each of 48 trials as he took a puzzle from 1 of 2 piles differing in difficulty according to a prearranged schedule. One group with the easy pile on the preferred side showed differentially faster reaching to the easy pile over trials while a 2nd group with the location of the piles reversed failed to show this effect. These results indicate that degree of success is a variable affecting speed of reaching and suggest that the effect of a trial on subsequent reaching speed is a function of the interaction of degree of success and position of the piles.