Use of a ready signal in accommodation assessment

The usual procedure in making laser optometer measurements of accommodation is to precede each trial with a ready signal. Given previous findings that stress, arousal, attention, etc., can influence accommodation and related phenomena, the question arises as to whether such a ready signal might induce some form of orientation response reflected in alterations of accommodation. Dark focus (DF) accommodation (accommodation in total darkness) was assessed in 26 young adults (13 males and 13 females) under two conditions, one of which involved the use of a ready signal and the other did not. Analyses showed that the presence or absence of the ready signal had no differential impact on accommodation.