Nicholas T W, Soltysik S S
Int J Psychophysiol. 1984 Nov;2(2):97-110. doi: 10.1016/0167-8760(84)90003-5.
Kittens were given differential early experience in order to compare an objective coping behavior with the result of an inescapable aversive experience. Separate groups of kittens were treated in a shock motivated runway task at either 4 or 12 weeks of age, by allowing one member of a weight matched sibling pair to acquire an escape behavior, while the other member was confined; a third subject served as a handled control. Escape behavior was significantly different for 4 and 12 week old subjects, since the older kittens reached a running asymptote within the first few shock trials. At 6 months of age, the subjects were tested for effects of differential early treatment; heart rate, respiration rate and amplitude, and somatic activity were measured during classical conditioning. While all groups gave evidence of acquisition in one or more response measures, only a potentiated heart rate response in 4 week kittens could be related to early experience. Heart rate did not differentiate escaping kittens from confined ones. Rather, heart rate was related to early treatment with shock, perhaps reflecting an increased tendency to react with a passive defensive response.
为了比较一种客观的应对行为与不可避免的厌恶经历的结果，给小猫提供了不同的早期经历。将体重匹配的同窝小猫分成不同组，在4周龄或12周龄时进行电击驱动的跑道任务，让同窝小猫中的一只学会逃避行为，而另一只则被限制行动；第三只小猫作为接受抚摸的对照。4周龄和12周龄的小猫逃避行为有显著差异，因为年龄较大的小猫在最初几次电击试验中就达到了奔跑极限。在6个月大时，对这些小猫进行不同早期处理效果的测试；在经典条件反射过程中测量心率、呼吸频率和幅度以及躯体活动。虽然所有组在一种或多种反应指标上都显示出习得，但只有4周龄小猫中增强的心率反应与早期经历有关。心率并不能区分学会逃避的小猫和被限制的小猫。相反，心率与早期电击处理有关，这可能反映出产生被动防御反应的倾向增加。
