ACTIVE AVOIDANCE IMPAIRMENT FOLLOWING SEPTAL LESIONS IN CATS

Compared the performance of 39 cats with septal lesions with that of 49 controls in 10 different behavioral tests. The effect of the lesion on the rate of acquisition of an active-avoidance task was dependent upon the testing situation. Avoidance performance of Ss with lesions was: (1) inferior in 3 successive modifications of a shelf-jump task, (2) enhanced in a shuttle box, and (3) normal in a 1-way apparatus. Disinhibitory effects were observed in some of the behavioral tests employed. Experimental Ss (1) returned to food more readily in a noncontingent shock situation, but performed normally on a standard passive-avoidace task, (2) required more punished responses to extinguish a 2-way avoidance task, and (3) made more errors than control Ss during the reversal of a position habit. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved). © 1969 American Psychological Association.