Albertella Lucy, Harris Justin A, Boakes Robert A
University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
Q J Exp Psychol (Hove). 2008 Feb;61(2):227-31. doi: 10.1080/17470210701664864.
This experiment investigated the role of context in the expression of conditioned flavour preferences. Rats were trained on a mixture of almond and sucrose and were then given intermixed exposures to almond in one context (Context A) and to sucrose in a second context (Context S). Finally, choice tests were given in both contexts, with one group given almond-versus-water tests and the other almond + sucrose-versus-sucrose tests. Preference for almond over water was greater in Context A than in Context S. Conversely, preference for almond + sucrose over sucrose was greater in Context S than in Context A. These results suggest that the perceived sweetness of a flavour depends on the context in which it is presented and confirm that expression of a flavour preference depends on the type of test employed.
本实验研究了环境在条件性味觉偏好表达中的作用。大鼠接受杏仁和蔗糖混合物的训练，然后在一种环境（环境A）中让其接触杏仁，在另一种环境（环境S）中让其接触蔗糖。最后，在两种环境中都进行选择测试，一组进行杏仁与水的测试，另一组进行杏仁+蔗糖与蔗糖的测试。在环境A中，对杏仁相对于水的偏好大于在环境S中的偏好。相反，在环境S中，对杏仁+蔗糖相对于蔗糖的偏好大于在环境A中的偏好。这些结果表明，一种味道的感知甜度取决于呈现它的环境，并证实了味觉偏好的表达取决于所采用的测试类型。
