Associative structure of differential inhibition: implications for models of conditioned inhibition.
Following A+/X- training (with A, X, and + being a light, tone, and footshock, respectively), rats received extinction of A and the training context, extinction of the training context alone, or no extinction. The inhibitory potential of X was then assessed with conditioned lick suppression in a neutral context using both summation and retardation tests. Extinction of the training context alone and extinction of A and the training context reduced the inhibitory potential of X appreciably and equally. Hence, what is traditionally called differential inhibition appears to depend not on the excitatory value of A but on the excitatory value of the training context. In conjunction with what is known about other inhibitory training procedures, these results suggest that a conditioned inhibitor is a stimulus that has been paired with little or no reinforcement in the presence of an accompanying stimulus that predicts greater reinforcement.
Miller
R R
RR
Department of Psychology, SUNY, Binghamton 13902-6000.
Hallam
S C
SC
Hong
J Y
JY
Dufore
D S
DS
D000818:Animals; D001070:Appetitive Behavior; D001143:Arousal; D001245:Association Learning; D003214:Conditioning, Classical; D005108:Extinction, Psychological; D005260:Female; D005795:Generalization, Stimulus; D007266:Inhibition, Psychological; D008297:Male; D008960:Models, Psychological; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D011930:Reaction Time