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Stimulus control of behavioral history
1Department of Psychology, West Virginia University, Morgantown 26505-6040.
Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior
|January 1, 1992
Summary
Pigeons exposed to different reinforcement schedules retained behavioral history effects. These effects influenced subsequent performance on interval schedules, demonstrating within-subject control.
Area of Science:
- Behavioral Psychology
- Animal Behavior
- Operant Conditioning
Background:
- Behavioral history effects are crucial for understanding learning and performance.
- Previous research primarily focused on between-subject comparisons of these effects.
- The role of stimulus control in maintaining within-subject behavioral history effects was less understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the persistence and nature of behavioral history effects within individual subjects.
- To examine how prior reinforcement schedules influence subsequent performance under different interval schedules.
- To determine if these effects are maintained under stimulus control.
Main Methods:
- Pigeons were exposed to various reinforcement schedules (fixed-ratio, differential-reinforcement-of-low-rate, multiple schedule) under different stimulus conditions.
- Subsequent performance was assessed under fixed-interval or variable-interval schedules.
- Response rates and patterns were recorded across multiple sessions to evaluate persistence.
Main Results:
- Prior exposure to fixed-ratio or differential-reinforcement-of-low-rate schedules induced lasting response-rate differences, but not pattern changes, on interval schedules.
- Effects of reinforcement-schedule history on fixed-interval performance were generally more persistent.
- In Experiment 3, a history of varied response rates under a multiple schedule led to persistent rate differences under identical variable-interval schedules.
Conclusions:
- Behavioral history effects can significantly and persistently influence operant behavior within individual subjects.
- These effects are demonstrable under stimulus control, extending previous findings beyond between-subject comparisons.
- Reinforcement schedule history plays a critical role in shaping subsequent performance, particularly in rate but not pattern.
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