Department of Psychology, University of the Pacific, Stockton, CA 95211, USA.
J Exp Anal Behav. 2010 Nov;94(3):315-26. doi: 10.1901/jeab.2010.94-315.
Although newborns have surprised scientists with their learning skills, proficiency on concurrent schedules of reinforcement requires (in effect) the ability to integrate and compare behavior-consequence relations over time. Can very young animals obey the quantitative relation that applies to such repeated choices, the generalized matching law? The provenance of the skill is not well understood, and this study provides the first investigation of matching in neonates. Northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus) hatchlings pecked left and right targets on a touchscreen for heat delivery on a concurrent variable-interval reinforcement schedule. Within 5 days after hatching, the chicks showed sensitivity levels significantly greater than zero, but short of typical adult levels. However, stable sequential patterns emerged almost immediately, including a consistent choose-rich tendency after unreinforced responses, one that entails some degree of temporal integration. These exploratory data suggest that the basic ability to match develops quickly in this precocial species, but that more extensive experience may be required to achieve the higher sensitivities typically seen in adults.
尽管新生儿的学习能力令科学家们感到惊讶，但在同时进行的强化计划中表现出色（实际上）需要具备随着时间的推移整合和比较行为后果关系的能力。非常年幼的动物能否遵守适用于此类重复选择的定量关系，即广义匹配律？这种技能的起源尚不清楚，本研究首次对新生儿进行了匹配研究。白腰山鹧鸪（Colinus virginianus）雏鸟在触摸屏上啄左右目标，以获得强化计划中的热传递。孵化后 5 天内，小鸡表现出的敏感性水平显著高于零，但低于典型的成年水平。然而，几乎立即出现了稳定的顺序模式，包括在无强化反应后出现一致的选择丰富倾向，这需要一定程度的时间整合。这些探索性数据表明，在这种早熟物种中，匹配的基本能力发展得很快，但可能需要更多的经验才能达到通常在成年人中看到的更高敏感性。
