Some Effects of Partial Reinforcement with Shock on Classically Conditioned Heart-Rate in Dogs

Abstract

* Received for publication April 17, 1965. This research was supported by Grant HE 06 336 from the National Heart Institute, Grant GB-2221 from the National Science Foundation, and by funds bequeathed to the University of Oregon Medical School by Milton E. Kahn. The author is indebted to Professor Judson S. Brown for a critical reading of the manuscript and for his assistance in designing the programming equipment. 'B. D. Berger, Matthew Yarczower, and M. E. Bitterman, Effect of partial reinforcement on the extinction of a classically conditioned response in the goldfish, i. comp. physiol. Psychol., 59, 1965, 399-405 (Experiments 1, 2, and 3; R. C. Gonzalez, Nicholas Longo, and M. E. Bitterman, Classical conditioning in the fish: Exploratory studies of partial reinforcement, J. comp. physiol. Psychol., 54, 1961, 452-456; R. C. Gonzalez, Sandra Milstein, and M. E. Bitterman, Classical conditioning in the fish: Further studies of partial reinforcement, this JOURNAL, 75, 1962, 421-428; Nicholas Longo, Sandra Milstein, and M. E. Bitterman, Classical conditioning in the pigeon: Exploratory studies of partial reinforcement, J. comp. physiol. Psychol., 55, 1962, 983-986 (Experiment 2); Earl Thomas and A. R. Wagner, Partial reinforcement of the classically conditioned eyelid reponse in the rabbit, J. comp. physiol. Psychol., 58, 1964, 157-158. 2 Berger, Yarczower, and Bitterman, op. cit., 399-405 (Experiments 4 & 5); R. D. Fitzgerald, Effects of partial reinforcement with acid on the classically conditioned salivary response in dogs, J. comp. physiol. Psychol., 56, 1963, 1056-1060; R. C. Gonzalez, R. M. Eskin, and M. E. Bitterman, Further experiments on partial reinforcement in the fish, this JOURNAL, 76, 1963, 366-375; E. J. Wyers, H. V. S. Harmon, and M. J. Herz, Partial reinforcement and resistance to extinction in the earthworm, J. comp. physiol. Psychol., 57, 1964, 113-116; Longo, Milstein, and Bitterman, op. cit., 983-986 (Experiment 1); A. R. Wagner, Shepard Siegel, Earl Thomas, and G. D. Ellison, Reinforcement history and the extinction of a conditioned salivary response. J. comp. physiol. Psychol., 58, 1964, 354-358.