2 groups of 60 rats received either 75 or 285 runs in a runway before being given a choice between freeloading from a dish of pellets in the start box or running the maze for a single pellet. The 285-trial Ss showed less willingness to perform the operant than the 75-trial Ss. This is opposite to what Jensen (1963) had found in the Skinner box. Schedule of reinforcement (100 vs 50%) during training did not significantly affect freeloading scores.
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References
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JensenG. D.Preference for bar pressing over “freeloading” as a function of number of rewarded presses. J. exp. Psychol., 1963, 65, 451–454.
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LewisD. J.Acquisition, extinction, and spontaneous recovery as a function of percentage of reinforcement and intertrial interval. J. exp. Psychol., 1956, 51, 45–53.
