Premium
THE EFFECT OF SHOCK INTENSITY UPON RESPONDING UNDER A MULTIPLE‐AVOIDANCE SCHEDULE
Author(s) -
Powell Robert W.
Publication year - 1970
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.1970.14-321
Subject(s) - shock (circulatory) , intensity (physics) , schedule , audiology , psychology , medicine , computer science , physics , optics , operating system
The effect of two shock intensities (1.00 and 2.00 mA) were studied in the acquisition, maintenance, and extinction of unsignalled avoidance by albino rats. Single and multiple avoidance schedules were employed, with shock intensity being the principal condition that differed between schedule components. The higher shock intensity was generally more effective in producing avoidance. Higher response rates and lower shock rates were observed under high‐intensity shock when performance stabilized. When the multiple schedule was introduced, the six rats trained under a single shock intensity all showed poorer performance under the new shock intensity, whether it was higher or lower than the training intensity. Performance under the original shock intensity did not change substantially with the introduction of a different shock intensity in the other multiple schedule component. Performance under the new shock intensity showed gradual improvement with continued exposure to it. All of the rats showed persistent “warm‐up”, receiving approximately 40% of the total session shocks in the first one‐sixth of the session. The degree of warm‐up was unrelated to avoidance shock intensity.