EFFECTS OF PREEXPOSURE TO THE SAME OR DIFFERENT PATTERN OF EXTRA-MAZECUES ON SUBSEQUENT EXTRA-MAZE DISCRIMINATION

In two experiments, rats learned a spatial discrimination between maze arms defined by their relationship to a variety of extra-maze cues. P rior exposure to the actual arms between which animals were required t o discriminate tended to retard subsequent learning (by comparison wit h a control group either given no pre-exposure to the extra-maze cues or exposed only to arms pointing in the opposite direction), whereas p rior exposure to arms intermediate between those used in discriminatio n training tended to facilitate subsequent learning. These results are consistent with the suggestion that pre-exposure will facilitate disc rimination learning when it reduces the associability of features or e lements common to the stimuli between which animals are required to di scriminate, more than it reduces the associability of the features or elements unique to each.