The Operation of an Acquired Drive in Satiated Rats

Abstract

A series of four short experiments indicates that the behaviour of satiated rats in a runway, at the end of which they have previously been rewarded, differs significantly from the behaviour of satiated rats without previous reward in the experimental situation. The former group reach the end box more quickly after having been put in the starting box of the runway and if provided with food in the end box proceed to eat it, although they have just refused similar pieces of food in their home cages. This is shown not to be due to defective satiation or the operation of fear in the control group. When runs and feeding in the end box are separated during the training period, the previously rewarded group still shows a more vigorous response on satiated trials, indicating that it is a reward expectancy about the goal box rather than a running habit which has become “functionally autonomous”, acting as a situation-specific drive.