The effects of grouping (crowding) on humoral antibody response to typhoid paratyphoid vaccine and subsequent protection from a minimal lethal challenge dose of Salmonella typhimurium were studied in white Swiss-Webster mice. The data show a trend between the degree of crowding and antibody response. Geometric mean titers of high density grouped mice were significantly lower than the geometric mean titers of the less crowded mice. Also, there were significantly less antibody responders in the high density grouped mice than in the less crowded mice. However, challenged with a minimal LD50 dose of Salmonella thphimurium, no deaths occurred in the immunized study group, regardless of measurable antibody level. In the nonimmunized controls, which were under the same stressor conditions, there was a significant difference between the level of crowding and death to challenge. The data show that nonimmunized mice in this study exhibited a marked increase in susceptibility to an infectious agent when under the stressor effect of crowding.

Interaction distances for 562 pairs of individuals in military settings were recorded at the moment a conversation was begun. It was found that interactions initiated with superiors were characterized by greater distance and, further, that this distance increased with the discrepancy in rank. When interactions were initiated with subordinates, interaction distance was unrelated to rank discrepancy. It was hypothesized that superiors are free to approach subordinates at distances which indicate, intimacy, while subordinates are not at liberty to do so.

No abstract

Previous studies have indicated that interpersonal touch decreases with age. In the present study 1012 pairs of college students and 212 pairs of elderly subjects were observed in cafeteria queues. Instances of touch were recorded along with sex, race, and body parts used to touch and touched. College students segregated themselves by race and sex just as the younger students had been observed to do in previous studies. Unlike all previous studies the elderly subjects did not segregate themselves by gender. For college students, touch was highest for female to male combinations; blacks were more likely to touch other blacks and least likely to touch whites. Touch was more likely among elderly subjects for female to female interactions than it was for college students, but there were no differences for the other gender combinations. In college students personal body areas were used to touch those of different gender while impersonal body areas were used to touch those of the same gender; personal body areas were more likely to be touched by others of the other gender. For elderly subjects there were no differences in frequencies with which personal or impersonal areas were involved in touch in relation to gender for either area used to touch or area touched.

Reactions to the invasion of personal space in terms of age, sex, and race of the invaders were investigated. Children, grouped by sex (male and female), race (black and white), and age (5, 8, and 10 yr. old), invaded the personal space of 192 adults grouped by sex (male and female) and race (black and white). The six types of behavioral responses were: avoidance, aggression, exploratory behavior, facilitative behavior, excess motor activity, and failure to respond. Responses to personal space invasion were not affected by sex. Blacks responded more often than whites but did not differ with regard to any particular type of behavioral response. Age of the invader had a significant effect on type of response given by adults whose personal space was invaded. It was concluded that the age of the invader was much more important than race or sex in determining the response to invasion of personal space.