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PARTIAL NEGATIVE REINFORCEMENT: FIXED‐RATIO ESCAPE
Author(s) -
Hendry Derek P.,
Hendry Louise Simpson
Publication year - 1963
Publication title -
journal of the experimental analysis of behavior
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.75
H-Index - 61
eISSN - 1938-3711
pISSN - 0022-5002
DOI - 10.1901/jeab.1963.6-519
Subject(s) - reinforcement , shock (circulatory) , bar (unit) , escape response , psychology , conditioning , extinction (optical mineralogy) , audiology , social psychology , neuroscience , medicine , mathematics , statistics , physics , optics , meteorology
Rats were unable to sustain performance when eight bar‐presses turned off shock (—FR 8). In a second experiment, thirsty rats were able to maintain a moderate response rate when performance on —FR 8 was also reinforced with water. Some rats continued to bar‐press on —FR 8 after withdrawal of positive reinforcement, but at a much lower rate. A possible explanation of the results is that during intermittent escape conditioning in a free‐responding situation the absence of shock itself acquires aversive properties.