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Author Zentall, T.R.; Weaver, J.E.; Clement, T.S.
Title Pigeons group time intervals according to their relative duration Type Journal Article
Year 2004 Publication (up) Psychonomic bulletin & review Abbreviated Journal Psychon Bull Rev
Volume 11 Issue 1 Pages 113-117
Keywords Animals; Columbidae; *Discrimination (Psychology); Reinforcement (Psychology); Time Factors; Time Perception
Abstract In the present research, we asked whether pigeons tended to judge time intervals not only in terms of their absolute value but also relative to a duration from which they must be discriminated (i.e., longer or shorter). Pigeons were trained on two independent temporal discriminations. In one discrimination, sample durations of 2 and 8 sec were associated with, for example, red and green hue comparisons, respectively, and in the other discrimination, sample durations of 4 and 16 sec were associated with vertical and horizontal line comparisons, respectively. If pigeons are trained on a temporal discrimination and tested with intermediate durations, the subjective midpoint typically occurs close to the geometric mean of the two trained values. The 4- and 8-sec values were selected to be the geometric mean of the two values in the other discrimination. When a 4-sec test sample was presented with the comparisons from the 2- and 8-sec discrimination, the pigeons preferred the comparison associated with the shorter sample. Similarly, when an 8-sec test sample was presented with the comparisons from the 4- and 16-sec discrimination, the pigeons preferred the comparison associated with the longer sample. Thus, a relative grouping effect was found. That is, durations that should have produced indifferent choice were influenced by their relative durations (shorter than or longer than the alternative) during training.
Address Department of Psychology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky 40506-0044, USA. zentall@pop.uky.edu
Corporate Author Thesis
Publisher Place of Publication Editor
Language English Summary Language Original Title
Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title
Series Volume Series Issue Edition
ISSN 1069-9384 ISBN Medium
Area Expedition Conference
Notes PMID:15116995 Approved no
Call Number refbase @ user @ Serial 231
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Author Nallan, G.B.; Pace, G.M.; McCoy, D.F.; Zentall, T.R.
Title Temporal parameters of the feature positive effect Type Journal Article
Year 1979 Publication (up) The American journal of psychology Abbreviated Journal Am J Psychol
Volume 92 Issue 4 Pages 703-710
Keywords Animals; Columbidae; Conditioning, Operant; *Discrimination Learning; Form Perception; Male; *Time Perception
Abstract Trial duration and intertrial interval duration were parametrically varied between groups of pigeons exposed to a discrimination involving the presence vs. the absence of a dot. Half the groups received the dot as the positive stimulus (feature positive groups) and half the groups received the dot as the negative stimulus (feature negative groups). Faster learning by the feature positive birds (feature positive effect) was found when the trial duration was short (5 sec) regardless of whether the intertrial interval was short (5 sec) or long (30 sec). No evidence for a feature positive effect was found when the trial duration was long (30 sec) regardless of the length of the intertrial interval (30 sec or 180 sec). The results suggest that short trial duration is a necessary condition for the occurrence of the feature positive effect, and neither intertrial interval nor trial duration/intertrial interval ratio are important for its occurrence. The suggestion that mechanisms underlying the feature positive effect and autoshaping might be similar was not supported by the present experiment since the trial duration/intertrial interval ration parameter appears to play an important role in autoshaping but not the feature positive effect.
Address
Corporate Author Thesis
Publisher Place of Publication Editor
Language English Summary Language Original Title
Series Editor Series Title Abbreviated Series Title
Series Volume Series Issue Edition
ISSN 0002-9556 ISBN Medium
Area Expedition Conference
Notes PMID:532834 Approved no
Call Number refbase @ user @ Serial 269
Permanent link to this record