Consummatory and instrumental responding as functions of deprivation.

Abstract

Twelve albino rats were divided into two deprivation groups, high and low, and were run in Skinner boxes for a .3-ml., 16% sucrose reinforcement. Analysis of the grain of the consummatory (licks) and instrumental (bar press) responses led to the conclusion that for consummatory responses neither the latency, duration, average, nor momentary rate of responding varied significantly as a function of deprivation. Latency showed a slight tendency to decrease for high deprivation and to increase for low deprivation, average rate to decrease, and momentary rate to increase across a session. For the BP response, on the other hand, the latency and therefore the duration of pressing were functions of both deprivation and satiation. The average rate proved to be related to deprivation only, while two measures of the momentary rate appeared related to neither deprivation nor satiation. In extinction the rate of occurrence of licking showed a much more rapid decline than did rate of BP.