The meaning of adaptation in the behavioral sciences

The term "adaptation" in the behavioral sciences refers to the ability of living tissue to adjust to the demands of environmental changes. This is accomplished in a variety of ways. For example, the sense organs become less sensitive when stimulated and more sensitive when stimulation is removed. Long-term effects of adaptation, for example to distracting noises, are observed in the absence of known physiological changes. The perceptual system is able to extract from the large quantity and quality of stimuli impinging upon it only those which are of interest and relevance. The prime mechanism of adaptation, however, is the ability of the human operator to adjust his responses to novel situations, i.e., learning It is the redundancy of the human operator which is his most valuable asset and prescribes the inclusion of the human in complex systems in spite of the concomitant demands for life support. The papers in the symposium are designed to illustrate several ways in which the human operator exhibits adaptation.