Abstract
Naive rhesus monkeys, trained to a criterion on a visual discrimination task, were given reversal trials on the same problem after either 6 or 126 additional trials. The two groups did not differ in visual performance as would have been predicted by the overlearning reversal effect. This failure is not easily attributable to procedural variation which has been present in previous primate studies, and it suggests the possibility of phylogenetic differences in habit reversal problems.
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Supported in part by NIH grant FR-0167 and Army Chemical R & D Laboratories Contract DA18-035-AMC-135(A) to the University of Wisconsin Primate Laboratory. We thank H. F. Harlow and V. J. Polidora for their cooperation, support and assistance. In conducting the research reported herein, the investigators adhered to the “Principle of Laboratory Animal Care” as established by the National Society for Medical Research.
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Cross, H.A., Boyer, W.N. Influence of overlearning on single habit reversal in naive rhesus monkeys. Psychon Sci 4, 245–246 (1966). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03342276
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03342276