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On the Role of Memory in Concept Learning by Pigeons

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Abstract

Twenty pigeons, divided into four groups, were trained to discriminate picture categories of birds and mammals in a natural-category experiment. Two groups were trained with 5 items from each category and two groups were trained with 35 items from each category. For one 5-item group and one 35-item group, stimuli were assigned according to bird (S+ set) and mammal (S− set) categories and for the other groups (5 and 35 items) the same stimuli were pseudorandomly assigned to an arbitrary S+ set and S− set. Groups with fewer items acquired the discrimination faster than groups with more items irrespective of item assignment. Only the 35-item category group, upon transfer to novel items, showed any evidence of concept learning. The 5- item category group learned its expanded 35-item discrimination in about one half the number of sessions required by the 5-item pseudocategory group to learn its expanded 35-item discrimination. The 5-item category group acquired the 35-item discrimination in fewer sessions than the original 35-item category group, indicating a savings attributable to first learning with few items. The 5-item pseudocategory group showed no savings in acquiring the 35-item discrimination relative to the original 35-item pseudocategory group. A continuum model of concept learning is suggested in which categorization is controlled by rote memorization of a few items, by exemplar processing when more items are involved, and by prototype processing when even more items are used.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, TN, 37132, USA

    Donald F. Kendrick

  2. University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, USA

    Anthony A. Wright

  3. Tufts University, USA

    Robert G. Cook

Authors
  1. Donald F. Kendrick
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  2. Anthony A. Wright
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  3. Robert G. Cook
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Additional information

This research was supported by a grant from Mtsu to Donald F. Kendrick, by a Postdoctoral Fellowship, EY-05653, to Robert G. Cook, and by a grant, MH-35202, to Anthony A. Wright. We thank Daniel A. Newman for his help in conducting the experiment, and Mark Rilling and Michigan State University for providing space and pigeons for portions of the experiment.

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Kendrick, D.F., Wright, A.A. & Cook, R.G. On the Role of Memory in Concept Learning by Pigeons. Psychol Rec 40, 359–371 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03399546

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