Effects of massed practice and thickness of handcoverings on manipulation with gloves

"This study was designed to evaluate the importance of surface friction and thickness of handcovering materials during prolonged manipulatory performance . . . . Manipulatory skill was evaluated by three criterion measures: mean prehension force, total number of transports, and mean time per transport. The measures were taken at three-minute intervals. Twenty-four male Ss performed a simple manipulation task of 30 minutes' duration. The Ss were randomly divided into four groups of six Ss each. Each group performed with one type of handcovering only . . . . All three criterion measures were directly affected by change in surface friction, and to a lesser extent by thickness of the material." Practical implications for the design of protective handgear were discussed.