Abstract
Aiming to examine the function of projection as a part of human cognitive behavior, this study focused on studying how an emotional factor affects projective movements by analyzing the quality of the movements. Subjects: Sixty junior college women. Visual stimuli: Sixteen unambiguous figures. Emotional states: As indurced by comfortable, uncomfortable sounds, or neutral state. The subjects were randomly divided into three emotionally different groups. Then stimulus slides were projected in a random order on a screen. Each stimulus was evaluated in terms of the amount, speed, and direction of its projectively perceived movement. Results: 1. A highly positive correlation was found between the emotional state and the amount of projected movements. 2. With regard to the speed and direction of projected movements, significant differences were found among the three groups of subjects and among the stimuli. Conclusions: 1. When considering the effect of emotional states on projected movements, the quality (speed and direction) of the movements, in addition to their amount alone, should be taken into account. 2. Under emotionally uncomfortable conditions, the speed and direction are mutually complementary as a means of protection against anxiety.
