Abstract
The effect of a retention interval on latent inhibition was studied in three experiments by using rats and the conditioned taste-aversion procedure. In Experiment 1, we demonstrated an apparent loss of latent inhibition (i.e., a strengthening of the aversion) in preexposed subjects that experienced a retention interval of 12 days between conditioning and the test. In Experiment 2, we found no effect of this retention interval on the habituation of neophobia produced by the phase of exposure to the flavor. In Experiment 3, we showed that interposing a retention interval between preexposure and conditioning produced effects exactly comparable to those seen in Experiment 1. The implications of these results for rival theories of latent inhibition, as an acquisition deficit or as a case of interference at retrieval, are discussed.
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This research was supported by a grant from the Spanish Ministerio de Educacion y Ciencia (Estancias de Investigadores en Centros de Investigacion Extranjeros) to the first author, and by a grant from the U.K. Science and Engineering Research Council to the third author. We thank Charlotte Bonardi for her helpful comments.
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Aguado, L., Symonds, M. & Hall, G. Interval between preexposure and test determines the magnitude of latent inhibition: Implications for an interference account. Animal Learning & Behavior 22, 188–194 (1994). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03199919
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03199919