Excerpt from On Certain Electrical Processes in the Human Body and Their Relation to Emotional Reactions

To study the influence of resistance changes, the second method was used, namely, the introduction into the circuit of the Gordon cell in series with the body and the galvanometer. Owing to the magnitude of the current, the sensitivity of the galvanometer was reduced one hundred-fold by means of the shunt. As stated above, the deflections thus caused ranged generally between 500 and 600 m. If a series of word stimuli was then tried, the deflections which resulted invariably consisted in an increase in the initial deflection. Their average magnitude was between 10 and 20 mm. And they rarely exceeded 60 mm.; thus the maximum deflections indicated an increase of about 10 per cent. In the current passing through the body. At first sight it might appear that here also the deflections are due to electrical potential in the hands augmenting the current of the cell, but the fact that the deflections here are all in one direc tion, while with isopotential electrodes they may be in either, is much against it. Furthermore, a little quantitative study shows that a difierence of potential of the magnitude detected with iso potential electrodes could not possibly produce such large deflec tions as are seen with the cell current. The galvanometer being at 01 of its full sensitivity which is employed with isopotential elec trodes, it would require 100 times as much e.m.f. To produce a given deflection as it does to produce the same deflection at full sensitiv ity, and yet the deflections in the two cases are found to be of about the same magnitude. With isopotential electrodes and the galvan ometer at full sensitivity, the deflections following stimuli rarely exceed 100 mm. It would require 30 times the e.m.f. Which this indicates to produce a change of 30 mm. With the sensitivity re duced, and yet 30 mm. Is by no means an infrequent deflection with the Gordon cell. It follows from this that electro-motive changes can not account for the deflections observed when a strong outside current is used. In short, emotional reactions are accompanied both by changes in the difierence of potential between the immersed fingers and by changes in the resistance of the body.

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