Abstract
Past evidence that pigeons may adopt a single-code/default strategy to solve duration sample discriminations may be attributable to the similarity between the intertrial interval (ITI) and the retention interval. The present experiments tested whether pigeons would adopt a single-code/default strategy when possible ITI-retention-interval ambiguity was eliminated and sample salience was increased. Previous studies of duration sample discriminations that have purported to show evidence for the use of a single-code/default coding strategy have used durations of 0, 2, and 10 sec (Zentall, Klein, & Singer, 2004). However, the results of Experiment 1 suggest that the use of a 0-sec sample may produce an artifact resulting in inadvertent present/absent sample matching. In Experiment 2, when pigeons were trained with three nonzero duration samples (2, 8, and 32 sec), clear evidence for the use of a single-code/default strategy was found.
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This research was supported by National Institute of Mental Health Grant MH-63726. E.D.K.
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Singer, R.A., Klein, E.D. & Zentall, T.R. Use of a single-code/default strategy by pigeons to acquire duration sample discriminations. Learning & Behavior 34, 340–347 (2006). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03193197
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03193197