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A Procedure to Observe Context-induced Renewal of Pavlovian-conditioned Alcohol-seeking Behavior in Rats
Published on: September 19, 2014
Stimulus- and pellet-induced drinking during a successive discrimination
Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior
|July 1, 1987
Summary
Rats exhibit distinct water drinking patterns, pellet-induced or stimulus-induced, depending on experimental training order. These drinking behaviors are influenced by the timing of food delivery schedules and extinction components.
Area of Science:
- Behavioral neuroscience
- Animal behavior studies
Background:
- Interim drinking in rats is a complex behavior influenced by various schedules.
- Understanding drinking patterns provides insights into operant conditioning and learned behaviors.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate interim water drinking patterns in rats under different experimental conditions.
- To examine the influence of training order and schedule parameters on drinking behavior.
Main Methods:
- Rats were exposed to a multiple schedule with extinction and variable-time food delivery components.
- Experiments manipulated the order of discrimination training and the duration of schedule components.
Main Results:
- Two drinking patterns emerged: pellet-induced drinking (post-food) and stimulus-induced drinking (at extinction onset).
- Pellet-induced drinking occurred when stable post-food drinking preceded training.
- Stimulus-induced drinking occurred when training preceded other conditions, and its rate varied with component duration.
Conclusions:
- The order of experimental procedures significantly impacts the manifestation of interim drinking patterns in rats.
- Schedule component duration is a critical factor influencing the rate of schedule-induced drinking.
