Effects of punishing elements of a simple instrumental-consummatory response chain

Rats were trained to press a lever, with every response reinforced with water. After responding was established, nine rats were administered a brief shock after each lever press, and nine others were shocked after drinking. The two procedures resulted in similar suppression of responding, and examination of the latency data when responding was partially suppressed indicated that under both conditions response suppression was due primarily to an increase in the latency of the instrumental response, rather than to pausing between the instrumental and consummatory responses. Thus, punishment following either the instrumental or consummatory component of the simple response sequence reduced the number of sequences initiated, rather than selectively suppressing the punished behavior.