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Dzik MV, Carballo F, Cavalli C, Iglesias M, Faragó T, Kubinyi E, Bentosela M. What if the reward is not as yummy? Study of the effects of Successive Negative Contrast in domestic dogs in two different tasks. J Vet Behav 2024; 72:18-27. [PMID: 38435337 PMCID: PMC7615697 DOI: 10.1016/j.jveb.2023.12.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/05/2024]
Abstract
Successive Negative Contrast (SNC) occurs when there is a reduction in the quantity or quality of a reward that is expected according to the presence of contextual cues. This induces an emotional response of frustration that is similar to stress. While this phenomenon has been observed in several mammal species, findings in domestic dogs have been inconsistent, although this issue has strong relevance in dog training. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of Successive Negative Contrast in two responses that had already been studied in this species, but with an increase in the methodological rigor and variations in the experimental conditions to examine the generalizability of the phenomenon. To this end, experimental dogs experienced a pre-shift phase in which they received a high-value reward (liver), followed by a post-shift phase in which they obtained a low-value reward (dry dog food), and then a re-shift phase in which the high-value reward was available again. Control dogs received dry food in all phases. The results show a contrast effect on the behavior of following human pointing to obtain food (Study 1). On the contrary, there were no differences in problem solving behavior after the de- and re-evaluation of the reward during a non-social task (Study 2). The results support that Successive Negative Contrast is not a consistent phenomenon in pet dogs. It is possible that certain characteristics of dogs such as the great availability of high-value rewards in their daily lives could attenuate the effects of a reduction in incentive value.
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Affiliation(s)
- M V Dzik
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Instituto de Investigaciones Médicas (IDIM), Grupo de Investigación del Comportamiento en Cánidos (ICOC), Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Medicina, Instituto de Investigaciones Médicas A. Lanari, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - F Carballo
- Instituto de Ciencias Biológicas y Biomédicas del Sur (INBIOSUR), Departamento de Biología Bioquímica y Farmacia, Universidad Nacional del Sur (UNS) - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Bahía Blanca, Argentina
- ELTE Eötvös Loránd University, Department of Ethology, Budapest, Hungary
| | - C Cavalli
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Instituto de Investigaciones Médicas (IDIM), Grupo de Investigación del Comportamiento en Cánidos (ICOC), Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Medicina, Instituto de Investigaciones Médicas A. Lanari, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - M Iglesias
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Instituto de Investigaciones Médicas (IDIM), Grupo de Investigación del Comportamiento en Cánidos (ICOC), Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Medicina, Instituto de Investigaciones Médicas A. Lanari, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - T Faragó
- ELTE Eötvös Loránd University, Department of Ethology, Budapest, Hungary
- MTA-ELTE Lendület "Momentum" Companion Animal Research Group, Budapest, Hungary
| | - E Kubinyi
- ELTE Eötvös Loránd University, Department of Ethology, Budapest, Hungary
- MTA-ELTE Lendület "Momentum" Companion Animal Research Group, Budapest, Hungary
- ELTE NAP Canine Brain Research Group
| | - M Bentosela
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Instituto de Investigaciones Médicas (IDIM), Grupo de Investigación del Comportamiento en Cánidos (ICOC), Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Medicina, Instituto de Investigaciones Médicas A. Lanari, Buenos Aires, Argentina
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Incentive disengagement and the adaptive significance of frustrative nonreward. Learn Behav 2022; 50:372-388. [DOI: 10.3758/s13420-022-00519-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 02/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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Hemingway CT, Muth F. Label-based expectations affect incentive contrast effects in bumblebees. Biol Lett 2022; 18:20210549. [PMID: 35259941 PMCID: PMC8905167 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2021.0549] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
While classic models of animal decision-making assume that individuals assess the absolute value of options, decades of research have shown that rewards are often evaluated relative to recent experience, creating incentive contrast effects. Contrast effects are often assumed to be purely sensory, yet consumer and experimental psychology tell us that label-based expectations can affect value perception in humans and rodents. However, this has rarely been tested in non-model systems. Bumblebees forage on a variety of flowers that vary in their signals and rewards and show contrast when rewards are lowered. We manipulated bees' expectations of stimulus quality, before downshifting the reward to induce incentive contrast. We found that contrast effects were not solely driven by experience with a better reward, but also influenced by experience with associated stimuli. While bees' initial response did not differ between treatments, individuals were faster to accept the lower-quality reward when it was paired with a novel stimulus. We explored the boundaries of these label-based expectations by testing bees along a stimulus gradient and found that expectations generalized to similar stimuli. Such reference-dependent evaluations may play an important role in bees' foraging choices, with the potential to impact floral evolution and plant community dynamics.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Felicity Muth
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Texas, Austin, TX, USA
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Guarino S, Conrad SE, Papini MR. Control of free-choice consummatory behavior by absolute reward value. LEARNING AND MOTIVATION 2020. [DOI: 10.1016/j.lmot.2020.101682] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
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Daniel AM. Scaling relative incentive value in honey bees, Apis mellifera. LEARNING AND MOTIVATION 2020. [DOI: 10.1016/j.lmot.2020.101614] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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