The relation between mean reward and mean reinforcement.

Abstract

4 groups of rats were run in single choice mazes where they received 1 unit of reward for each run to 1 side and 2 units for 50% of the runs to the other, with large reward and small reward groups for both food and water. The 2 small reward groups acquired a significant preference for the response followed by the 50% reward condition: the 2 large reward groups did not acquire a preference. Response selection is therefore, not determined entirely by the mean reward following choice responses.