Relative cover to target cue duration controls target responding in the signaled random procedure.
Item
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Title
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Relative cover to target cue duration controls target responding in the signaled random procedure.
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Identifier
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AAI9969699
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identifier
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9969699
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Creator
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Jakubow, James Joseph.
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Contributor
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Adviser: Bruce L. Brown
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Date
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2000
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Psychology, Behavioral | Psychology, Experimental
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Abstract
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Random arrangements of target conditional stimuli and unconditional stimuli result in low levels of conditioned responding to the target cue. When all unconditional stimuli in the intertrial-interval are signaled with a separate cue, the cover cue, higher levels of responding to the target conditional stimulus are observed. Assays that include a signal for the intertrial-interval unconditional stimuli are called signaled random procedures. A review of the signaled random procedure literature reveals that significantly more target cue responding is elicited when the target and cover cue durations are equal and when they are unequal. Experiment 1 was a systematic replication of an experiment by Williams (1994). In this experiment, pigeons were exposed to a 15-second target stimulus and either a 15-second or 5-second cover stimulus. Results replicated Williams' outcomes in that birds exposed to equal stimulus durations responded to the target cue significantly more than birds exposed to the unequal stimulus durations. Experiment 2 was designed as a test of this relative cue-duration effect. Four groups of pigeons were exposed to equal target and cover cue durations of 4, 12 and 36 seconds. Two more groups were exposed to unequal stimulus durations of a 12-second target cue with either a 4 or 36-second cover cue. Results confirmed the prediction that significantly more target cue responding appears when the target and cover cue durations are equal. A common-elements mechanism employing temporal and nontemporal cue elements is used to interpret the body of data in the literature. The effects of this mechanism are better predicted by competition models than by comparator models.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
