The role of context priming in the attenuation of neophobia

Donna Marie Viveiros, Purdue University

Abstract

Three experiments examine the role of context priming in the attenuation of neophobia. Experiments 1-3 examine differential predictions from an arousal hypothesis of neophobia (Domjan, 1977) and a memory hypothesis of neophobia reduction (Bond & Westbrook, 1982), based on Wagner's Information Processing Theory (Wagner, 1976; 1978; 1981). According to the arousal position, neophobia is displayed to novel tastes when intake-produced arousal, caused by the novelty of the taste, adds to the animals current arousal state bringing arousal above optimal. The result is an intake suppression of the arousal producing taste (Domjan, 1977). According to the memory position, neophobia to a taste stimulus occurs due to a lack of recognition of the taste stimulus. During flavor presentations context-flavor associations occur. The context then is able to prime a representation of the flavor into STM where it can be recognized on subsequent trials. Experiments 1 and 2 demonstrate that rats reduce intake of a saccharin solution in an environment different from the one in which the flavor was first exposed only when that environment is unfamiliar to the subjects. Experiment 3 demonstrates that preexposure to the saccharin exposure context prior to the onset of saccharin exposure (a latent inhibition manipulation) does not hinder the reduction of expressed neophobia as compared to nonpreexposed controls. In fact, preexposed animals showed less neophobia than nonpreexposed animals. These results are consistent with predictions from an arousal hypothesis of the modification of neophobia (e.g., Domjan, 1977) but not a memory analysis based on Wagner's Information Processing Theory (Wagner, 1976; 1978; 1981). The results are also discussed in terms of competing exploratory and avoidance behaviors.

Degree

Ph.D.

Advisors

Capaldi, Purdue University.

Subject Area

Psychology|Experiments

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