Premium
REDUCTION OF SHOCK DURATION AS NEGATIVE REINFORCEMENT IN FREE‐OPERANT AVOIDANCE
Author(s) -
Bersh Philip J.,
Alloy Lauren B.
Publication year - 1980
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.1980.33-265
Subject(s) - reinforcement , duration (music) , shock (circulatory) , psychology , audiology , avoidance learning , avoidance response , operant conditioning , intensity (physics) , developmental psychology , medicine , social psychology , neuroscience , physics , acoustics , quantum mechanics
Rats were trained on a free‐operant procedure in which shock duration was controlled by responses within a limited range of interresponse times. Shocks of 1.6‐mA intensity occurred randomly with average density of 10 shocks per minute. As long as interresponse times were 15 seconds or less, any shocks received were at the briefer of two durations (.3 second). Whenever interresponse times exceeded 15 seconds, any shocks received were at the longer duration (1.0 second). For six of eight animals, avoidance responding developed quickly and reached levels of better than 90%. Four yoked animals stopped responding within the first few sessions. Shock duration reduction without change in shock probability or intensity was sufficient for the acquisition and maintenance of avoidance responding.