Two experiments are reported which suggest that the regular sequencing of N-lengths both within and between daily acquisition sessions may function as a significant determiner of the strength of resistance to extinction. Rats were trained with increasing, decreasing, or random N-length sequences either within daily blocks of trials (Exp. I) or across days (Exp. II). In both experiments increasing N-lengths, e.g., R-N-R-NN-R-NNN-R, produced greater resistance to extinction than decreasing N-lengths, e.g., R-NNN-R-NN-R-N-R. The results were interpreted as more in accord with the frustration position of Amsel rather than the sequential-memory view of Capaldi.
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