Effects of coping behavior on gastric lesions in rats as a function of the complexity of coping tasks.
In fixed ratio (FR) 2 coping task condition, experimental rats which could avoid and/or escape shock by emitting a disk-pulling operant response developed less stomach ulceration than did yoked "helpless" rats which had exactly the same shock but which had no control over shock. In variable ratio (VR) 5 coping task condition, however, the experimental rats developed more lesions than did the matched yoked rats. Neither the VR 2- nor the FR 5-experimental group was significantly different from its yoked group. Ulceration of non-shock control group was negligible compared to experimental and yoked rats in each of the four coping task conditions. The level of a complexity or difficulty of coping response tasks required has a detrimental effect on ulcerogenesis for "coping" experimental rats. The effectiveness of a coping behavior covaries with the nature or ease of the coping tasks in a stressful situation.
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D003216:Conditioning, Operant / Q000502:physiology; D004597:Electroshock; D004924:Escape Reaction / Q000502:physiology*; D005753:Gastric Mucosa / Q000473:pathology; D006380:Helplessness, Learned / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D013276:Stomach Ulcer / Q000473:pathology*