Formalin-like sodium appetite and thirst elicited by a conditioned stimulus in rats.

Describes 3 experiments with male Wistar rats (N = 33) in which the intake of water and a .33-M NaCl (saline) solution was elicited by a stimulus which was previously associated with the administration of formalin, and hence with a physiological need for both water and sodium. This "conditioned" thirst and sodium appetite were not due to a water or sodium need, however, and in fact were shown to be the result of pseudoconditioning. Results are interpreted as being consistent with a hypothesis that a physiological need must be present in order for conditioned appetitive behavior to be manifest. (27 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)