An evaluation of conditioned inhibition as defined by Rescorla's two-test strategy

Rescorla's (1969) two-test strategy for diagnosing conditioned inhibition has been widely accepted by researchers interested in animal learning and memory. Recently, however, several reports have questioned the necessity of the two-test strategy for identifying conditioned inhibition. Moreover, Papini and Bitterman (1993) have criticized previous demonstrations of conditioned inhibition that used the two-test strategy as being inadequate to rule out alternative explanations of behavior often interpreted as evidence of inhibition. The present research addresses some of the problems identified by Papini and Bitterman in previous demonstrations of conditioned inhibition and provides a demonstration of empirical conditioned inhibition using the two-test strategy. Implications for arguments concerning the necessity and sufficiency of the two-test strategy are discussed. (C) 1997 Academic Press.