The effects of training to approach vs. to escape from electric shock upon subsequent discrimination learning.

Abstract

Hungry hooded rats trained to run to food in a gridded straighaway, either from a non-grid-ded platform (approach group) or after being dropped on a charged (escape group) or uncharged grid. The runway was painted either white or black. Subsequently all animals were tested in a black-white discrimination problem, the black-white being used as a substitute cue for the shock of the preliminary training. When the substitute cue was "correct" the approach animals learned more rapidly, and when the substitute cue was in the "wrong" alley the escape animals were somewhat superior to the approach group. The control animals were inferior to both shock groups.