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CHOICE OF NON‐REINFORCEMENT FOLLOWING FORCED ALTERNATION
Author(s) -
HOLDING DENNIS H.,
BIRKIMER JOHN C.,
DANIELS KENNETH R.,
BROWN ROBERT P.
Publication year - 1975
Publication title -
british journal of psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.536
H-Index - 92
eISSN - 2044-8295
pISSN - 0007-1269
DOI - 10.1111/j.2044-8295.1975.tb01479.x
Subject(s) - psychology , alternation (linguistics) , reinforcement , preference , spontaneous alternation , chose , extinction (optical mineralogy) , two alternative forced choice , social psychology , developmental psychology , cognitive psychology , neuroscience , statistics , paleontology , philosophy , linguistics , mathematics , political science , hippocampus , law , biology
Previous research has suggested conditions for the learning of the non‐rewarded instead of the rewarded of two alternatives. Two experiments were performed with a reconvergent maze, in which food reward depended upon passing through only one of the two pathways. Rats given a block of non‐rewarded then a block of rewarded trials chose predominantly the rewarded pathway during free‐choice extinction testing, but those subjected to simple alternation sequences of rewarded and non‐rewarded trials chose primarily the non‐rewarded pathway. Faster running on non‐rewarded trials preceded choice of the non‐rewarded pathway by alternation subjects, and the evidence suggests that increased training led to greater preference for the non‐rewarded alternative.