Magnitude and timing of nictitating membrane movements during classical conditioning of the rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus).
A trial-by-trial, subject-by-subject analysis was conducted to determine whether generation of the conditioned response (CR) occurs on a continuous or all-or-none basis. Three groups of rabbits were trained on different partial reinforcement schedules with the conditioned stimulus presented alone on 10%, 30%, or 50%, respectively, of all trials. Plots of each rabbit's nictitating membrane movements revealed that their magnitude rose in a continuous fashion. Response growth during acquisition followed a sigmoidal curve, and the timing of CR-sized movements was largely stable throughout the experiment. The results are discussed with respect to alternative models of CR generation.
Kehoe
E James
EJ
School of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia. j.kehoe@unsw.edu.au
Ludvig
Elliot A
EA
Dudeney
Joanne E
JE
Neufeld
James
J
Sutton
R S
RS
D000818:Animals; D003214:Conditioning, Classical / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D009068:Movement / Q000502:physiology*; D009119:Muscle Contraction / Q000502:physiology; D009541:Nictitating Membrane / Q000502:physiology*; D011817:Rabbits; D012055:Reinforcement Schedule