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BEHAVIORAL EFFECTS OF IONIZED AIR ON RATS
Author(s) -
Duffee R. A.,
Koontz R. H.
Publication year - 1965
Publication title -
psychophysiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.661
H-Index - 156
eISSN - 1469-8986
pISSN - 0048-5772
DOI - 10.1111/j.1469-8986.1965.tb03267.x
Subject(s) - psychology , precondition , ionization , affect (linguistics) , ion , chemistry , audiology , zoology , developmental psychology , medicine , communication , organic chemistry , computer science , biology , programming language
The primary purpose of the experiments was to determine whether stress is a necessary precondition for ionized air to affect behavior. A secondary objective was to investigate the relationship between ion polarity and subject age. Thirty‐six male albino rats of the Wistar strain were used as subjects, divided into 2 groups according to age; one group was 3 months, and the other 14 months, old. Animals were exposed in environmental chambers in which the ion concentrations were 2.9 × 10 5 positive ions/cc, 1.4 × 10 5 negative ions/cc, or 600 positive and negative ions cc (control). Criteria for evaluating behavioral effects were rate of learning of a water maze and performance in the maze after learning was complete. Half of the subjects were subjected to a 60‐v, 0.7–sec electrical shock prior to maze trials. Results indicate that stress is not a necessary precondition for air ions to affect behavior. Learning of the maze was enhanced by both ion polarities, particularly by negatively ionized air. Performance of the older animals living in a negatively ionized atmosphere was significantly improved.