Abstract
Two experiments were performed on Long-Evans rats. The first study was designed to evaluate possible differences in muricidal behavior between killer and nonkiller rats following OB lesions. No significant differences in muricidal behavior were found after OB damage in either group. Experiment 2 examined the behavior of killer and nonkiller rats on reactivity to handling, open-field activity divided into the number of squares traversed and rearing, learning of a visual discrimination task, and learning of an olfactory discrimination task. Killers were found to be less reactive to handling, while exhibiting greater horizontal activity in the open-field test. No other differences were found.
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This research was performed by the third author in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the MS degree in Psychology at Mississippi State University. The research was in part supported by an institutional grant awarded to MSU by NSF.
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Thorne, B.M., Wallace, T. & Danzig, I. A comparison of killer and nonkiller rats. Psychobiology 6, 43–47 (1978). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03326689
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03326689