On each of 10 days rats and guinea pigs first barpressed for 15 reinforcements on a CRF schedule and then were immediately extinguished during an unsignalled 10-min. extinction session. Analysis of the number of bar-presses during each of 10 extinction sessions indicated a significant reduction for rats but not for guinea pigs because the level of barpressing remained consistently high immediately following reinforcement for the guinea pigs but declined progressively faster within successive extinction sessions for rats. Results support the idea that organisms with well developed sensory-motor capacities at birth are less able to inhibit previously rewarded responses than those with slower development.
References
1.
AlkovR. A., & CrawfordF. T.Successive reversal training in the lizard, Iguana Iguana. Proceedings of the 74th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association, 1966, 2, 153–154.
2.
BittermanM. E.Phyletic differences in learning. American Psychologist, 1965, 20, 396–410.
3.
BravemanN. S.Probability learning and successive discrimination reversals in rats and guinea pigs. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Washington State Univer., 1971.
4.
GonzalesR. C.HolmesN. K., & BittermanM. E.Resistance to extinction as a function of frequency and amount of reward. American Journal of Psychology, 1967, 80, 269–275.
5.
GossetteR. L.Examination of the retention decrement explanation of comparative successive discrimination reversal learning by birds and mammals. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 1968, 27, 1147–1152.
6.
GossetteR. L., & HoodP.Interspecies comparisons of variations in magnitude of inhibitory control in reversal learning. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 1968, 26, 66.
7.
PowellM. R., & DoolittleJ. H.Repeated acquisition and extinction of an operant by oppossum and rats. Psychonomic Science, 1971, 24, 22–23.
8.
SetteringtonR. G., & BishopH. E.Habit reversal improvement in the fish. Psychonomic Science, 1967, 7, 41–42.
9.
SquierL. H.Reversal learning improvements in the fish, Astronotus ocellatus (Oscar). Psychonomic Science, 1969, 14, 143–144.
10.
WilliamsJ. T., & AlbiniakB. A.Probability learning in a crocodilian. Psychonomic Science, 1972, 27, 165–166.
