Reed Phil
Swansea University.
J Exp Psychol Anim Learn Cogn. 2015 Oct;41(4):432-43. doi: 10.1037/xan0000065. Epub 2015 Apr 27.
Three experiments examined the impact of various aspects of reinforcement contingencies on responding maintained by free-operant schedules by food-deprived rats. Experiment 1 demonstrated that random interval (RI) and random-interval-with-positive-response-reinforcer-feedback (RI+) schedules maintained similar rates of responding at a variety of reinforcer frequencies. Experiment 2 demonstrated that a random ratio (RR) schedule maintained higher rates than RI or RI+ schedules, except at high rates of reinforcement, where response rates were similar on all schedules. Experiment 3 again demonstrated that RR schedules produced higher response rates than either RI or RI+ schedules, but modification of the RI+ schedule to prevent ratio strain enhanced response rates relative to an RI schedule. Together these results reveal a pattern of interacting factors in schedule controlled behavior: at high rates of reinforcement, this factor overrides the impact of other controlling factors, but as reinforcement rate decreases the joint impact of interresponse times reinforcement, response-reinforcer feedback functions, and ratio strain are observed.
三项实验研究了强化偶然性的各个方面对食物剥夺大鼠自由操作式程序维持反应的影响。实验1表明，随机间隔（RI）和带阳性反应强化物反馈的随机间隔（RI+）程序在各种强化物频率下维持着相似的反应速率。实验2表明，随机比率（RR）程序维持的反应速率高于RI或RI+程序，但在高强化率时除外，此时所有程序的反应速率相似。实验3再次表明，RR程序产生的反应速率高于RI或RI+程序，但对RI+程序进行修改以防止比率应变相对于RI程序提高了反应速率。这些结果共同揭示了程序控制行为中相互作用因素的模式：在高强化率时，该因素超越其他控制因素的影响，但随着强化率降低，可观察到反应间隔时间、强化、反应-强化物反馈功能和比率应变的共同影响。
