Leinenweber, A., Nietzel, S. M., & Baron, A. (1996).
Temporal control by progressive-interval schedules of reinforcement.
Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior,
66, 311-326.
Progressive-interval performances are described using measures
that have proven to be successful in the analysis of
fixed-interval responding. Five rats were trained with schedules
in which the durations of consecutive intervals increased
arithmetically as each interval was completed (either 6-s or 12-s
steps for different subjects). The response patterns that emerged
with extended training (90 sessions) indicated that performances
had come under temporal control. Postreinforcement pausing
increased as a function of the interval duration, the pauses were
proportional to the prevailing duration, and the likelihood of
the first response within an interval increased as the interval
elapsed. To assess the resistance of these patterns to
disruption, subjects were trained with a schedule that generated
high response rates and short pauses (variable ratio). When the
progressive-interval schedule was reinstated, pausing was
attenuated and rates were elevated, but performances reverted to
earlier patterns with continued exposure. The results indicated
that temporal control by progressive-interval schedules, although
slow to develop, is similar in many respects to that for
fixed-interval schedules.
Key words: progressive-interval schedule, variable-ratio
schedule, fixed-interval schedule, patterns of responding,
postreinforcement pause, history effects, lever press, rats