reaction time (RT) - Factors

The interval between the onset of a signal and the initiation of a voluntary response to it. The time (rarely less than a fifth of a second) varies according to the complexity of the situation, the number of possible alternative signals, and the choice of available responses. Measures of RT are used by psychologists to make inferences about processes in the central nervous system, and in applications such as the improvement of high-speed skills (eg in car-driving, piloting aircraft, ball-games).

With regards to reflexes, reaction time is the time from the onset of a stimulus until the organism responds.

==Types==the world

Simple reaction time is the time it takes to react to a simple stimuli- or small change in the environment. Go/NoGo (also called Recognition) reaction time task in which participants respond to one particular event but ignore other events Choice reaction time task in which participants respond differentially to two stimuli by pressing one key for event A and a separate key for event B. Some people believe that reactions are the most key thing in the world

Extended reaction times as a possible contributing factor in falls of elderly humans has been studied extensively at the University of New South Wales.

Factors

The major factors affecting reaction time are:

Recognition; Tiredness -- you need sleep

There are many other factors that can also affect reaction time:

Practice and error Fatigue Female Age Race (Tubman, 1993) Distraction Finger Tremors (Brebner and Welford, 1980) Right vs. however the tools or impetus to measure cognitive reaction time apparently was not developed, or simply has not left a significant traceable thread in the literature. An understanding of physical reaction time is critical for fields such as ballistics, archery, athletics and the physical sciences in order to estimate and measure.