By responding on a changeover key, subjects could change the prevailing unsignalled VI 65-sec. schedule to a signalled, but otherwise identical, schedule. On the signalled schedule a brief tone preceded reinforcement. Regardless of the duration of the signal (5.0, 3.0, 1.0, 0.5, or 0.1 sec.), subjects strongly preferred the signalled schedule. Withdrawal of the signal produced a rapid decline in the changeover key response rate, demonstrating that production of the signalled condition maintained the responding. Results support the information hypothesis.
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