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. 1976 Sep;26(2):221–235. doi: 10.1901/jeab.1976.26-221

Effects of a delay-reinforcement procedure on performance under IRT>t schedules1

Fernando A Gonzalez, Robert J Newlin
PMCID: PMC1333509  PMID: 16811944

Abstract

Water-deprived rats were studied under a compound schedule that prescribed that responses terminating interresponse times (IRTs) greater than a fixed value t1 (IRT > t1 component schedule) initiated a delay of reinforcement interval t2, at the end of which water was presented if the subject did not respond (R̄ > t2 component schedule). If the subject responded before the t2 interval elapsed, the IRT > t1 component schedule was re-initiated and water was not presented. The IRT > t1 and R̄ > t2 component schedules were not differentially correlated with distinctive stimuli. Rate of responding during the IRT > t1 component decreased as a function of the value of t2. The magnitude of the decreases in response rate appeared to be proportional to the subject's rate under the IRT > t schedule with no delay of reinforcement (t2 = 0 sec). The effects were independent of the parameter value of the IRT > t1 component schedule and of the rate of reinforcement. The results suggested that “efficiency” of performance under IRT > t schedules can be increased by appropriately arranging brief delays of reinforcement.

Keywords: delay of reinforcement, IRT > t schedules, DRL, DRO, efficiency, rats

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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