Bonney K R, Wynne C D L
Department of Psychology, Nedlands, Australia.
J Comp Psychol. 2003 Jun;117(2):188-99. doi: 10.1037/0735-7036.117.2.188.
Four experiments examined the ability of quokkas (Setonix brachyurus) and fat-tailed dunnarts (Sminthopsis crassicaudata) to solve 2 configural tasks: transverse and negative patterning. Transverse patterning requires the simultaneous solution of 3 overlapping discrimination problems (A+ B-, B+ C-, C+ A-). Both species could solve the nonoverlapping (elemental) version of this task (U+ V-, W+ X-, Y+ Z-), but only dunnarts solved the transverse patterning task. Negative patterning requires conditioned responses to 2 stimuli when presented separately but not together (A+, B+, AB-). Both species formed a selective conditioned response to A+ and B+ stimuli and inhibited responding to a simple nonreinforced stimulus (C-), but only dunnarts successfully inhibited responding to the AB- compound to solve the negative patterning task. These experiments are the first to demonstrate configural learning in a marsupial.
四项实验检验了短尾矮袋鼠（Setonix brachyurus）和肥尾袋鼩（Sminthopsis crassicaudata）解决两种构型任务的能力：横向模式和负性模式。横向模式要求同时解决3个重叠的辨别问题（A+B-，B+C-，C+A-）。两种动物都能解决该任务的非重叠（基本）版本（U+V-，W+X-，Y+Z-），但只有袋鼩能解决横向模式任务。负性模式要求在单独呈现但不同时呈现的2种刺激（A+，B+，AB-）时产生条件反应。两种动物都对A+和B+刺激形成了选择性条件反应，并抑制对简单非强化刺激（C-）的反应，但只有袋鼩成功抑制对AB-复合刺激的反应以解决负性模式任务。这些实验首次证明了有袋类动物的构型学习。
