Suppression of consummatory behavior elicited by a lithium-conditioned flavor

Parker, Linda Alice (1979) Suppression of consummatory behavior elicited by a lithium-conditioned flavor. Doctoral (PhD) thesis, Memorial University of Newfoundland.

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Abstract

A rat develops an aversion to the flavor of a solution which is paired with illness. Although it is well established that the rat will avoid consuming this flavor, the actual conditioned response (CR) that it elicits has not been systematically investigated. The following series of experiments present a technique for measuring this CR. The rats were first trained to discriminate between an aversive flavored solution (CS+) which was paired with lithium and a safe flavored solution (CSc) which was presented alone. The CR was then measured by the ability of the immediate aftereffect of the CS+ flavor to suppress consumption of a differently flavored solution (the test solution). While the rats consumed the test solution, they were intraorally infused with 2 ml of either the CS+ or esc flavored solution; the time to resume drinking and the subsequent rate of licking of the test solution were recorded. -- All experiments demonstrated that the rats infused with the CS+ flavored solution were more hesitant to resume drinking the test solution than were the rats infused with the esc flavored solution. This CR was evident whether the test solution was unflavored water, a novel flavored solution or a conditioned aversive flavored solution; however, the duration of the CR varied by the nature of the test solution, ranging between 45 and 235 seconds. Finally, the strength of the suppressive CR was influenced by variations of the sickness intensity and the flavor intensity during conditioning. -- It is unlikely that the CR measured in these experiments is the sole motivator of a flavor aversion, because extinction of the suppressive CR did not even weaken the rats subsequent avoidance of the CS+ flavored solution. The suppressive CR elicited by a lithium-conditioned flavor parallels the suppressive CR elicited by a shock-conditioned external cue.

Item Type: Thesis (Doctoral (PhD))
URI: http://research.library.mun.ca/id/eprint/11202
Item ID: 11202
Additional Information: Bibliography : leaves 122-129.
Department(s): Humanities and Social Sciences, Faculty of > Psychology
Science, Faculty of > Psychology
Date: January 1979
Date Type: Submission
Library of Congress Subject Heading: Conditioned response

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