Establishment of a Classically Conditioned Response and Transfer of Training via Cannibalism in Planaria

Abstract

To show that a conditioned response could be established in Planaria using massed training trials and this conditioning could be transferred via cannibalism, this experiment utilized 5 training groups, an experimental group with light-shock paired (LSP) and control groups of light-shock not paired, light, shock, and naive (neither light nor shock). All groups were given 225 massed trials and then tested under 25 trials of paired light and shock. These groups were then cannibalized by a second group of Ss and this second group tested under 25 trials of paired light and shock. The data indicated that a classically conditioned response was obtained only in the LSP training group and training was transferred in all groups via cannibalism without significant change.