Balaban M T, Rhodes D L, Neuringer A
Department of Psychology, Reed College, Portland, OR 97202.
Biol Psychol. 1990 Jun;30(3):203-17. doi: 10.1016/0301-0511(90)90140-r.
Two groups of students attempted to learn sequences of letter-number pairs. For both groups, a tone signalled each error. However, for aversive punishment subjects, a mildly painful electric shock followed the tone 20% of the time, whereas the informational punishment subjects received only the tone. Skin conductance responses (SCRs) and cardiac interbeat intervals indicated the presence of an orienting response to the tone in informational punishment subjects and a defense response to the tone in aversive punishment subjects. Accompanying these were significant differences in behavior: aversive punishment subjects completed fewer sequences and had higher error rates. The two groups did not differ in measures of tonic arousal. Session trends suggested that the cardiac orienting response developed in both groups as subjects learned to use the information in the punishment contingency. Defense responses to aversive punishers may complete with orienting responses necessary to the efficient learning of complex tasks.
两组学生尝试学习字母-数字对的序列。对于两组学生，每次出错时都会有一个音调提示。然而，对于厌恶惩罚组的学生，20% 的情况下，在音调之后会紧接着给予一次轻微的电击，而信息惩罚组的学生只听到音调。皮肤电导率反应（SCR）和心脏搏动间期表明，信息惩罚组的学生对音调存在定向反应，而厌恶惩罚组的学生对音调存在防御反应。伴随着这些反应的是行为上的显著差异：厌恶惩罚组的学生完成的序列较少，错误率较高。两组在静息觉醒指标上没有差异。实验阶段的趋势表明，随着受试者学会利用惩罚情境中的信息，两组学生都出现了心脏定向反应。对厌恶惩罚的防御反应可能会与高效学习复杂任务所需的定向反应相互竞争。
