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AGGRESSION AS A REINFORCER: OPERANT BEHAVIOR IN THE MOUSE‐KILLING RAT 1
Author(s) -
Hemel Paul E.
Publication year - 1972
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.1972.17-237
Subject(s) - reinforcement , aggression , operant conditioning , psychology , animal behavior , neuroscience , cognitive psychology , developmental psychology , social psychology , biology , zoology
Two experiments examined mouse killing as a reinforcer of key pressing by rats that killed mice. In Experiment I, mouse‐killing rats performed the key‐pressing response when each press was reinforced with presentation of a mouse. Offered a choice between a key that yielded presentation of mice and one that did not, the rats preferred the key that yielded mice. When the contingency was reversed, the rats preferred the other key and continued to kill mice. In Experiment II, mouse‐killing rats that did not kill rat pups performed a key‐pressing response reinforced with presentation of mice on a variable‐interval schedule. In tests for responding reinforced on that schedule with presentation of normal mice, anesthetized mice, dead mice, or rat pups, these rats that killed mice but not rat pups exhibited a decline in response rate when rat pups were the reinforcer. Altering the condition of the mice did not significantly affect performance.