Hot Air as an Aversive Stimulus: Supressive Effects of Extended Exposure in Rattus Norvegicus

Abstract

Electric Shock is the stimulus most frequently used as a punishing stimulus in basic research on aversive control, what imposes limitations on the generality of data. In this study, the punishing function of a hot air puff (HAP) was evaluated in two experiments. Experiment I used six albino rats divided in two Groups: Continuous Punishment (females) and Intermittent Punishment (males). Each group was exposed to five sessions in which bar presses were established and maintained under CRF (water as reinforcement), followed by 10 sessions of HAP and an additional session of reconditioning. The use of  HAP produced bar press suppression under both punishment schedules and  suppression was stronger under Continuous Punishment. Other responses related to the punished response were equally suppressed. Experiments are compatible with those obtained with electric shock, suggesting the hot air puff as a promising methodological alternative in studies on aversive control.