Elsevier

Learning and Motivation

Volume 56, November 2016, Pages 31-37
Learning and Motivation

Perceptual learning in flavor preference conditioning: Restricting generalization of acquired preferences between flavors

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lmot.2016.09.001Get rights and content

Abstract

Two experiments with rats investigated perceptual learning using a conditioned preference procedure. Experiment 1 used a between-subject procedure in which rats received either intermixed preexposure (AX, BX, AX, BX…) or blocked preexposure (AX, AX…, BX, BX…) to flavor compounds before a conditioned preference was established to AX by pairing it with sucrose. During a test, rats given intermixed preexposure showed a greater preference for AX over BX than those given blocked preexposure. Experiment 2 showed that after intermixed preexposure to AX and BX, and a block of preexposure to CX, a preference established to AX was less likely to generalize to BX than to CX. These results represent the first demonstration of the impact of the schedule of preexposure on perceptual learning using a flavor preference procedure, and they parallel those previously observed using flavor aversion procedures.

Section snippets

Experiment 1

The design of Experiment 1 is summarized in Table 1. There were two groups of rats that both received preexposure to two flavor compounds (AX and BX; caramel + quinine and chocolate + quinine) over a set of morning and afternoon sessions. Rats in Group INT received intermixed exposure to AX and BX (AX, BX, AX, BX…), whereas those in Group BLK received a block of exposure to AX, for example, followed by a block of exposure to BX (AX, AX…BX, BX…). Subsequently, rats received pairings of AX with

Experiment 2

The design of Experiment 2 is shown in Table 3, which is modeled on the flavor aversion procedure employed by Blair and Hall (2003). All rats received intermixed preexposure to a pair of compounds (AX and BX), and a block of preexposure to a further compound (CX). After the preexposure stage, rats in Group COND received conditioning trials in which AX was paired with sucrose and those in Group UNP received unpaired presentations of AX and sucrose. The inclusion of these groups should allow an

General discussion

Perceptual learning effects are well established in flavor aversion procedures in rats (e.g., Blair and Hall, 2003, Honey and Hall, 1989, Mackintosh et al., 1991, Symonds and Hall, 1995). However, the development of flavor preferences and their generalization to other similar flavors in rats is an issue that has not received a great deal of investigation. Here, preferences established by pairing one flavor compound (AX; e.g., caramel plus quinine) with sucrose generalized to other flavor

Acknowledgment

This research was supported by grants PSI2012-31641 and PSI2015-63737-P (MINECO, Spain).

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      Perceptual learning can be defined as the learning process that results in an increased discrimination between two similar stimuli as a consequence of previous experience with them (for a recent review see Mitchell & Hall, 2014). Perceptual learning has proven to be a robust phenomenon, found in animals (Honey, Bateson, & Horn, 1994; Mondragón & Murphy, 2010; Prados, Sansa & Artigas, 2007; Recio, Iliescu, Honey, & de Brugada, 2016; Symonds & Hall, 1995) and humans (Dwyer, Mundy, & Honey, 2011; Lavis, Kadib, Mitchell, & Hall, 2011; Mitchell, Kadib, Nash, Lavis, & Hall, 2008; Mundy, Dwyer, & Honey, 2006; Mundy, Honey, & Dwyer, 2007; Recio, Iliescu, Mingorance, Hall & de Brugada, 2016). In the typical perceptual learning procedure animals are repeatedly exposed to two similar flavoured compound solutions, to later assess the discrimination between them.

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