Rats were trained on a visual discrimination problem with two relevant cues—brightness and orientation. They were then given eight reversals in succession on the same problem. After reversals 7 and 8 they were tested with each cue presented on its own to see how much they had learned about each. Individual animals tended to reverse the cue about which they learned more from reversals 7 to 8, so that animals that had learned reversal 7 mainly in terms of the brightness cue learned reversal 8 mainly in terms of the orientation cue and vice versa. The result provides further confirmation for a two-process model of discrimination learning in which one process is that of selective attention
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
MackintoshN. J. (1962). The effects of overtraining on a reversal and a non-reversal switch. J. comp. physiol. Psychol.55, 555–9.
2.
MackintoshN. J. (1963). The effect of irrelevant cues on reversal learning in the rat. Brit. J. Psychol.54, 127–34.
3.
MackintoshN. J. (1965). Selective attention in animal discrimination learning. Psychol. Bull.64, 124–50.
4.
SutherlandN. S. (1959). Stimulus analysing mechanisms. In: Proceedings of a Symposium on the Mechanization of Thought Processes. Vol. II, 575–609. London: H.M.S.O.
5.
SutherlandN. S. (1961). Visual discrimination of horizontal and vertical rectangles by rats on a new discrimination training apparatus. Quart. J. exp. Psychol.13, 117–21.
6.
SutherlandN. S. (1964a). Visual discrimination in animals. Brit. Med. Bull.20, 54–9.
7.
SutherlandN. S. (1964b). The learning of discrimination by animals. Endeavour23, 148–52.
8.
SutherlandN. S. (1966). Partial reinforcement and breadth of learning. Quart. J. exp. Psychol. (in press).
9.
SutherlandN. S.HolgateV. (1966). Two-cue discrimination learning in rats. J. comp. physiol. Psychol. (in press).
