Delayed Matching‐to‐sample Performance of Hens: Effects of Sample Duration and Response Requirements During the Sample

Abstract

Six domestic hens were trained under a delayed matching-to-sample procedure with red and green keylights as sample and comparison stimuli and a 1.5-s delay interval. The hens were trained to stop pecking the sample stimuli when a tone sounded. Duration of the sample stimuli (2 to 10 s) and the number of pecks required on the key on which these stimuli were presented (O to 10) were altered across conditions. Both the response requirement on the sample key and the duration of sample presentations affected accuracy. These findings are in agreement with those of earlier studies using other species and somewhat different procedures. Roberts, 1972;Roberts & Kramer, 1982;White, 1985).Increasing the duration of sample-stimulus presentations also increases (1986), who concluded that increasing sample-key response requirements increases accuracy primarily as a result of increased exposure to the sample rather than as a result of the effort required to respond. The primary purpose of the present study was to examine the contributions of sample duration and sample-key response requirements to DMTS performance. Domestic chickens were used as subjects. This species has been reported to respond well and similarly to pigeons under matching-to-sample procedures with no delay (DeMello, Foster, & Temple, 1992, 1993. Moreover, unpublished data indicate that the two species also respond similarly under DMTS procedures (e.g

Why Pigeons Say What They Do: Reinforcer Magnitude and Response Requirement Effects on Say Responding in Say—do Correspondence

“…This relation between say responding and correspondence accuracy was not observed for 2 of 3 pigeons in Experiment 2 (see right panel of Figure 4), but was significant for Pigeon 901 (p , .01). Not surprisingly, in Experiment 2, correspondence accuracy was comparable, and on occasion higher, on the key colors correlated with the FR 20 and FR 25 response requirements than on the key color correlated with the FR 5 response requirement, a finding that is consistent with prior reports that increasing sample response requirements or increasing the length of exposure to the sample stimulus increases conditional discrimination accuracy (e.g., Foster, Temple, Mackenzie, DeMello, & Poling, 1995). To summarize these effects, in Experiment 1, the higher percent correspondence on the key color correlated with the greatest reinforcer magnitude could have enhanced sensitivity to the differential reinforcer magnitudes; in Experiment 2, the percent correspondence was not greater for the key color correlated with the FR 5 response requirement so that reinforcement rates were similar across all key colors regardless of the responses required to the key colors.…”

Cognitive Abilities in Malawi Cichlids (Pseudotropheus sp.): Matching-to-Sample and Image/Mirror-Image Discriminations

“…The successful use of two stimuli in MTS testing was shown in different studies [7], [50], [56], [67], [68], [82]. The sample stimulus was first shown on its own for 5 seconds and then remained in the center of the screen while a test stimulus (one ‘target’ or positive stimulus and one ‘distracting’ or negative stimulus) appeared on either side (Fig.…”

“…Olfactory stimuli were successfully discriminated by dogs [66] and honeybees ( Apis mellifera [7]). Numerous studies concentrated on MTS tasks using visual stimuli such as colored or blinking lights (pigeons [50], [52], hens [67], rats [68]), two-dimensional form and color stimuli (pigeons [69], monkeys [57]), and digital computer-drawn color pictures (pigeons [61]). Also, three-dimensional objects (e.g.…”

Search for a hidden goal by clark’s nutcrackers (Nucifraga columbiana) is more accurate inside than outside a landmark array

“…Previous studies using DMTS have found that increasing the duration of the sample presentation (Nelson & Wasserman, 1978) or the response requirement to the sample (Foster, Temple, Mackenzie, DeMello, & Poling, 1995;Sacks, Kamil, & Mack, 1972) improves performance during a subsequent choice test. Increasing the duration of the samples may facilitate better storage of the stimulus events, whereas increasing the response requirement may increase the cost of incorrect responding.…”