Reaction to punishment, reflectivity, and passive avoidance learning in extraverts.

Passive avoidance learning occupies a central role in accounts of disinhibited behavior, ranging from psychopaths' persistent criminality (Hare, 1970) to extraverts' gregariousness (Gray, 1972). To explore the mechanism underlying passive avoidance deficits, we assessed the relation of extraversion, neuroticism, and response latency after punishment to passive avoidance learning by using two successive go/no go discrimination tasks. The tasks were designed to examine two aspects of subjects' reactions to punishment: response speed on trials immediately following punishment (Experiment 1) and time to terminate punishment feedback between successive trials (i.e., reflectivity; Experiment 2). Consistent with previous findings, the results of Experiment 1 showed that extraverts commit more passive avoidance errors than introverts do (Newman, Widom, & Nathan, 1985) and fail to pause following punished errors (Nichols & Newman, 1986). In Experiment 2, only neurotic extraverts displayed this pattern of performance differences. In both experiments, longer pausing following punishment predicted better learning from punishment for both introverts and extraverts. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Hippocampal function in avoidance learning and punishment.

Discusses the effects of hippocampal lesions in avoidance and punishment situations. It is proposed that animals with such lesions cannot process information about places and therefore cannot employ place strategies in avoidance learning and punishment situations; they can only employ cue strategies that involve learning to approach or avoid a cue or to perform a response in the presence of a cue. Intact animals, on the other hand, can employ both place and cue strategies. The data are, to a large extent, consistent with this hypothesis. Implications for theories of learning in situations involving aversive reinforcers are discussed. (125 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The role of nitric oxide in passive avoidance learning

The role of nitric oxide on passive avoidance learning was studied by administering L-arginine or D-arginine to male rats in a passive avoidance paradigm. L-Arginine administered into the lateral brain ventricle at a dose of 1.25 microg showed a tendency to increase the passive avoidance latency, and 2.5 microg exerted almost maximal action, but the action gradually increased still further up to 20 microg tested. D-Arginine had no action. Peripheral administration (intraperitoneal) of L-arginine facilitated the consolidation of passive avoidance learning in a dose-dependent manner. A significant increase in passive avoidance response was obtained following an injection of 100 mg/kg L-arginine. When L-arginine was given i.c.v. with a selected dose of 5 microg, 30 min prior to a learning trial, the latency of the passive avoidance response was likewise lengthened. However, when L-arginine was given 30 min before the 24-hr testing (retrieval), it was ineffective. It was also ineffective when given 6 hr after the training trial. However, when L-arginine was administered immediately following the training trial, the action in improving the consolidation could be detected 6 hr after the training trial. Nitro-L-arginine, which blocks nitric oxide synthase, can also block the facilitation of consolidation caused by the nitric oxide donor L-arginine. The nitric oxide synthase inhibitor per se in different doses had no action on the learning of a passive avoidance task. The results indicate that nitric oxide is able to facilitate the learning and consolidation of memory in a passive avoidance paradigm, but it is ineffective in retrieval processes. The results also suggest that, under the experimental circumstances used, nitric oxide is involved only in the facilitated learning and memory processes caused by pharmacological effect of L-arginine, and not involved in normal learning processes.     

Observation learning in day-old chicks using a one-trial passive avoidance learning paradigm

The ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters belong to a large superfamily of proteins which share a common function and a common nucleotide-binding domain. The CvaB protein from Escherichia coli is a member of the bacterial ABC exporter subfamily and is essential for the export of the peptide antibiotic colicin V. Here we report that, surprisingly, the CvaB carboxyl-terminal nucleotide-binding domain (BCTD) can be preferentially cross-linked to GTP but not to ATP at low temperatures. The cross-linking is Mg2+ and Mn2+ dependent. However, BCTD possesses similar GTPase and ATPase activities at 37 degrees C, with the same kinetic parameters and with similar responses to inhibitors. Moreover, a point mutation (D654H) in CvaB that completely abolishes colicin V secretion severely impairs both GTPase and ATPase activities in the corresponding BCTD, indicating that the two activities are from the same enzyme. Interestingly, hydrolysis activity of ATP is much more cold sensitive than that of GTP: BCTD possesses mainly GTP hydrolysis activity at 10 degrees C, consistent with the cross-linking results. These findings suggest a novel mechanism for an ABC protein-mediated transport with specificity for GTP hydrolysis.     

Amnesic effects of preacquisition, postacquisition, or preretrieval tetrodotoxin administration into the medial septal area on rat''s passive avoidance memorization

Treatment results in 65 patients with borrelial lymphocytoma (22 on the ear lobe and 43 on the breast), registered at the Department of Infectious Diseases, University Medical Centre Ljubljana, from January 1986 to March 1995, are presented. When lymphocytoma was the sole manifestation of Lyme borreliosis or associated with erythema migrans only patients were treated orally with doxycycline, phenoxymethylpenicillin or amoxicillin for 14 days, or azithromycin for 5 days (15, 19, six and 12 patients, respectively). When signs and symptoms of disseminated borrelial infection were present (seven patients) or clinically suspected (six patients) patients received ceftriaxone or penicillin G i.v. for 14 days. Lymphocytoma disappeared within a few weeks after the institution of treatment. The speed of regression depended on the duration of lymphocytoma before the institution of therapy. The number of patients was too low and pretreatment characteristics were too heterogeneous to enable a reliable comparison of the efficacy of different antibiotics. It appears that the effectiveness of doxycycline and azithromycin is comparable and that amoxicillin performs well, but some findings may indicate that phenoxymethylpenicillin is less effective than some newer antibiotics. The optimal agent, dosage and duration of therapy for borrelial lymphocytoma have not been determined.     

The effects of punishment (electric shock) on perceptual learning.

3 experiments were conducted to explore the consequences of the association of punishment with percepts and to trace its residual effects. Electric shock was associated with tactual profiles of faces. Voltage, temporal contiguity, and ability to escape shock were varied. The results showed that there was more reporting of the non-shocked profile as intensity of shock increased, that escape conditions lead to more reporting of the shocked profiles, the shocked profile is recalled more vividly, and as the delay between exposure and recall increases there is more reporting of the nonshocked profile. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of scopolamine on activity and passive avoidance learning in rats of different ages.

A total of 320 albino CFE Sprague-Dawley rats aged 16-17, 20-21, 24-25, 28-29, and 70-85 days old were injected intraperitoneally with either scopolamine hydrobromide (SCOP-HBr) or scopolamine methylnitrate (SCOP-Me-NO-3) at 4 levels (0, .5, 1.9, or 2.0 mg/kg. The SCOP-HBr but not he SCOP-Me-NO-3 disrupted passive avoidance in Ss aged 20-28 days. A subsequent replication at higher doses (4.0, 8.0, and 16.0 mg/kg) with 56 70-84 day old adults and 64 16-day-old pups indicated that SCOP-HBr could disrupt passive avoidance in the adults but not in the pups. Results are consistent with the hypothesis that a cholinergic inhibitory system which mediates passive avoidance develops in the rat 16-20 days postnatally. (29 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Affective consequences of social reinforcement, punishment, and neutral behavior.

The social behavior of 101 4- and 5-yr-old children was observed in 2 settings and classified as reinforcing, punishing, or neutral. The positive, negative, or neutral affective reactions of the target Ss were also recorded. Conditional probability analyses revealed that positive affective reactions tended to follow reinforcing behaviors and negative reactions followed punishing ones. Neutral behaviors were frequent and were distinct from reinforcing and punishing ones. The findings held for a majority of Ss and their interactions, as well as for the group as a whole. The importance of a classification of neutral behaviors and the social antecedents of expressed affect are discussed. (9 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Age-dependent improvement in passive avoidance learning of the young chick: Cholinergic mediation?

Studied cholinergic mediation of the age-dependent improvement in response suppression of the young chick by determining the performance of 144 Vantress?×?Arbor Acre 4-day-old chicks, pretreated with scopolamine (SCO), during passive avoidance (PA) and extinction testing. In Exp I, Ss were trained to keypeck for heat reward (prepunishment training), and then tested for PA learning under immediate, 2-sec-delayed, or no shock condition. Half of the Ss in each condition received saline injections before prepunishment training and .5 mg/kg SCO injections after training. The rest received .5 mg/kg SCO injections both before and after training. For Ss in both SCO groups, delaying shock onset resulted in significantly less response suppression than immediate response-contingent shock. In Exp II, 4-day-old Ss injected with saline or SCO were trained to keypeck for heat reward and then tested for resistance to extinction under response-contingent shock or nonshock conditions. Punishment decreased the number of extinction responses for both saline and SCO groups. Results indicte that the age-dependent improvement in response suppression of the young chick cannot be explained solely by a significant increase in central cholinergic functioning. (24 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of oral administration of soybean lecithin transphosphatidylated phosphatidylserine on impaired learning of passive avoidance in mice

Soybean lecithin transphosphatidylated phosphatidylserine (SB-tPS) was investigated for its effect on the impaired learning of a passive avoidance task by mice induced by scopolamine or cycloheximide. SB-tPS (240, 360, 480 mg/kg) administered orally significantly prolonged the step-through latency shortened by scopolamine. SB-tPS (240 mg/kg) administered orally also prolonged the step-through latency shortened by cycloheximide. These results suggest that the effect of SB-tPS on the impaired learning behavior may be related not only to the cholinergic system but also the serotonergic system.     

Disruption of passive avoidance learning in the rat by electrical stimulation of the hippocampus.

Five experiments, with 184 male albino rats, examined the effect of electrical stimulation to discrete regions of the dorsal hippocampus on passive avoidance. Ss stepped from a brightly lit, white compartment to a dark compartment. Following footshock in the dark compartment, step-through latencies were recorded 1 min, 24 hrs, and 48 hrs after footshock. When given 20 step-through trials prior to footshock, dentate-stimulated Ss exhibited lack of passive avoidance with particularly short latencies at 1 min, and CA1-stimulated Ss showed reduced latencies compared with latencies of cortical and nonoperated controls. In Exp II, Ss given stimulation in the same regions performed the avoidance task without prior step-through experience. All groups showed less passive avoidance than the control group in Exp I, and there were no significant differences between groups. With a single step-through trial before the footshock trial, longer avoidance latencies were recorded, but again groups did not differ significantly. Dentate-implanted Ss, given 20 prior exposure trials but with stimulation at different stages of the task sequence, demonstrated a passive avoidance deficit at 1 min after footshock. Results are discussed in terms of the generation of expectancy that the black compartment was a safe place and the effects of brain stimulation on the expectancy, with particular reference to O. S. Vinogradova's (1975) theory of hippocampal function. (32 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Stress and behavior in streptozotocin diabetic rats: Biochemical correlates of passive avoidance learning.

Retention of one-trial passive avoidance training was compared in diabetic and nondiabetic rats. Also compared were corticosterone concentrations associated with both training and retention testing, catecholamine excretion related to training, and regional brain catecholamine concentrations accompanying retention testing. Diabetic rats showed significantly better retention for the task than did nondiabetic rats. Associated with retention differences, diabetic rats had higher epinephrine excretion and nondiabetic rats had lower excretion after footshock training relative to baseline measures. Norepinephrine excretion was elevated in diabetics both in baseline measurement and during the 24 hr following footshock training. Diabetic rats had higher concentrations of norepinephrine (NE) and dopamine (DA) and lower 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid/dopamine {dopc/da} ratios in hypothalamus and higher NE in brain stem and amygdala than did nondiabetics, although both diabetic and nondiabetic rats had reduced DS and NE following retention testing. The results indicate that there are biochemical alterations in diabetes that may have important behavioral impact. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of early postnatal AF64A treatment on passive avoidance response and radial maze learning in rats

In order to investigate how the selectively lesioned cholinergic system at the early postnatal age influences adult learning behavior, the effects of postnatal administration of ethylcholine mustard aziridinium ion (AF64A), a selective cholinergic neurotoxin, on the acquisition of 2 kinds of learning tasks were examined. Rat pups received an intraventricular injection of AF64A (1.0 or 2.0 nmol) or saline on postnatal day 8, and in adulthood (at 3 months of age), they were tested with the acquisition of passive avoidance response (PAR) and 8-arm radial maze learning. In PAR testing, a significant impairment was observed in male AF64A-treated rats. In addition, in the radial maze task, AF64A-treated rats needed significantly more trials to acquire the task as compared with saline-treated animals. Histological examination after behavioral testings revealed a marked reduction of acetylcholinesterase-stained fibers in the hippocampus and dentate gyrus of the AF64A-treated groups, while there were no detectable changes in the striatum or cerebral cortex. The results suggest that early postnatal AF64A administration induced learning deficits in adulthood which were associated with long-lasting cholinergic denervation in hippocampal formation.     

Ontogeny of passive avoidance learning in domestic chicks: Punishment of key-peck and running responses.

Determined the effect of the number of prepunishment acquisition trials on the age dependency of passive avoidance (PA) learning of the chick in keypeck and runway tests. In 9 experiments, 1- and 4-day-old Ss were first trained to respond for heat reward. After a variable number of reinforced acquisition trials (ATs), Ss' responses were punished with aversive wing shocks. Results show that the age dependency of PA learning of the young S is related specifically to the number of reinforced training trials given prior to PA testing. When several prepunishment ATs were given, 1-day-old Ss learned as quickly as 4-day-old Ss to withhold responding when punished. However, when only a few ATs preceded PA testing, 1-day-old Ss showed significantly less response suppression than 4-day-old Ss. Rather, results suggest that the 1-day-old chick, compared with the 4-day-old chick, is deficient in learning or detecting changes in stimulus– and/or response–reinforcement contingencies. (25 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Scopolamine's effect on passive avoidance behavior in immature rats

Male albion rats ranging in age from 15-30 days were injected with either scopolamine hydorbromide or saline, prior to training and retention testing on a black-white passive avoidance (PA) task. Pretraining administration of a 1.0-mg/kg dose of scopolamine significantly increased the median number of trails to criterion for 18-, 21-, and 30-day-old rat pups when compared with their saline controls. Fifteen-day-olds showed drug-related PA deficits when a 2.0-mg/kg dose was given. Retention data reflect characteristic age-dependent memory loss over the 1-week acquistionretention period with no apparent state-dependent effects. The data suggest the presence of cholinergic inhibitory mediation of PA responding in preweanling and postweanling pups.     

Corticosterone levels during avoidance learning in rats with cingulate lesions suggest an instrumental reinforcement deficit.

Studied changes in fear or arousal during 2-way avoidance learning in male Moll-Wistar rats with cingulate lesions. The 12 Ss with lesions restricted to the cingulum bundle and rostral one-third to one-half of the cingulate cortex exhibited no deficit compared with the 15 operated control Ss in the acquisition of 2-way active avoidance. However, the cingulate-lesioned Ss did not exhibit the increase in intertrial sniffing and grooming or the decline in plasma corticosterone levels to the degree observed in control Ss in the course of acquisition and stabilization of the avoidance response. The primary effect of this lesion may therefore be less effective reinforcement of the instrumental response. (24 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A comparison of the effects of immediate reinforcement, constant delay of reinforcement, and partial delay of reinforcement on performance.

Investigated the relation between immediate reward, constant delay of reward, and partial delay of reward in 3 experiments with 149 naive female Sprague-Dawley rats. A discrete operant bar-press apparatus was employed. In Exp. I, constant delay produced less resistance to extinction than either immediate reward or partial delay, which were not different from each other. Changing the delay contingencies from training to extinction did not substantially influence performance. Exp. II showed that resistance to extinction was an increasing function of the length of the delay interval (7.5, 15, 30, or 45 sec.) in a partial-delay paradigm, and Exp. III demonstrated that resistance to extinction was a decreasing function of a constant delay interval (15, 30, or 45 sec.). Results are discussed in the context of A. Amsel's frustration theory and E. J. Capaldi's sequential hypothesis. (French summary) (23 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The influence of reinforcement and punishment in a minimal social situation.

"Two Ss, isolated from each other, were provided with two push buttons by means of which each could give the other a shock or score. The Ss were divided into a Weak Shock and a Strong Shock group. All Ss were merely told that they could press the two buttons in any manner that they pleased (no information was given concerning the purpose of the buttons). Each S was told to make as many points as possible. His score was indicated on a counter in front of S. It was found that the proportion of the total number of responses (both score and shock) that were correct (score responses) was significantly higher for the Strong Shock group. Learning occurred in the Strong Shock group within the first 5 minutes of the 25 minute experimental session. Learning was not, however, evident in the Weak Shock group." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of stimulation intensity on sociopathic avoidance learning.

On the basis of scores on standardized tests (e.g., the Taylor Manifest Anxiety Scale), 90 public offenders were selected to represent low, medium, and high levels of anxiety and low and high levels of sociopathy. Ss were exposed to an avoidance situation under either low, medium, or high levels of background auditory stimulation. The avoidance task allowed shock to be averted through appropriate active and passive avoidance responses in the presence of visually presented cues. Anxiety, sociopathy, and auditory stimulus intensity interacted in their effects on avoidance behavior. Primary sociopaths learned to avoid shock more effectively under conditions of higher auditory stimulus intensity, while avoidance behavior of control Ss was not affected by changes in the level of auditory stimulation. (20 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)