Do dynamic stimuli facilitate performance in a Pavlovian occasion setting procedure?

Abstract

In the domain of visual perception, motion cues are critical for the success of both predator and prey. To evaluate the superiority of motion cues in conditional relations, we trained rats on a feature-positive discrimination within a newly developed iPad-equipped apparatus. During feature-positive training animals must learn to respond to a target stimulus (e.g., A) in the presence of a feature (XA+) but not in its absence (A-) Two groups of rats were tested with a visual stimulus (feature) and an auditory stimulus (target). Group Dynamic received dynamic (left-to-right) presentations of the feature and Group Static received static presentations of the same feature. The dynamic visual feature did not facilitate FP discrimination learning during any portion of acquisition training. Responding on tests with combinations of X and C revealed that rats solved the feature-positive discrimination largely by learning the predictive value of X, rather than facilitation of A by X