Responses and pauses: discrimination and a choice catastrophe

Area of Science:

• Behavioral Psychology
• Animal Cognition
• Discrimination Learning

Background:

• Organisms often learn to associate external stimuli with outcomes.
• Investigating whether animals can use their own behavior as a stimulus is crucial for understanding self-awareness and cognitive processes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine if pigeons can discriminate between completing a task component by responding versus by pausing.
• To explore the role of self-generated behavioral stimuli in animal decision-making.
• To test predictions from catastrophe theory regarding behavioral data.

Main Methods:

• Pigeons were trained to produce a stimulus change by either responding or pausing.
• A choice task was implemented where different food rewards were contingent on the method of completing the initial component (response vs. pause).
• Pause durations were titrated to equalize response and pause completions, and a forced-choice procedure was also used.

Main Results:

• Pigeons accurately discriminated between responding and pausing, choosing the correct subsequent action to obtain food.
• Titration of pause requirements led to equal instances of responding and pausing.
• The data exhibited discontinuous functions consistent with catastrophe theory predictions.

Conclusions:

• Pigeons utilize their own prior behavior (responding or pausing) as a discriminative stimulus.
• The findings support the capacity for self-generated stimuli to guide behavior in pigeons.
• The study demonstrates a sophisticated level of behavioral control and cognitive flexibility in pigeons.