An Investigation into Establishing (Motivating) Operations
type: CreativeWork
description: Motivating Operations (MOs) are a fundamental concept in behavioural psychology. Despite this, empirical research into MOs is lacking. The overall aim of this thesis is to contribute to the experimental literature base for MOs. Experiment 2.1 used an already published video analysis methodology to assess the morphology of food motivated pecks made to a computer screen by hens, after the hens had been trained to emit the peck using either an autoshaping or handshaping procedure. The intention of this was to then be able to use the video analysis to assess the effect of altering two MOs related to two different reinforcers (e.g., food and water) at one time, on morphology. The study showed that both methods produced similarly formed pecks despite the variability inherent in the handshaping procedure. It was then concluded it is the nature of the reinforcer that gives rise to morphology not the autoshaping procedure per se which gives rise to a particular form of elicited responses. The aim of Experiment 3.1 and 3.2 was to develop a procedure for restricting access to water in laying hens, in order to motivate them sufficiently to respond for water reinforcers. Experiment 3.1 assessed the effect that gradually decreasing time and amount of water access had on food-restricted hens’ water consumption and health. It was found that hens could be restricted to one hr access of water (restricted to the maximum amount that hens would consume when access was ad libitum) without adverse effects to health being apparent. However, when the hens were subsequently exposed to FR schedules with a low response requirement in Experiment 3.2, they did not respond consistently. This indicated that the level of restriction was insufficient to motivate responding and this finding, combined with the difficulty of obtaining ethical approval, meant that the proposed experiments utilising water deprivation as an MO had to be abandoned. Experiment 4.1 used the autoshaping paradigm to assess the…
abstract: Motivating Operations (MOs) are a fundamental concept in behavioural psychology. Despite this, empirical research into MOs is lacking. The overall aim of this thesis is to contribute to the experimental literature base for MOs. Experiment 2.1 used an already published video analysis methodology to assess the morphology of food motivated pecks made to a computer screen by hens, after the hens had been trained to emit the peck using either an autoshaping or handshaping procedure. The intention of this was to then be able to use the video analysis to assess the effect of altering two MOs related to two different reinforcers (e.g., food and water) at one time, on morphology. The study showed that both methods produced similarly formed pecks despite the variability inherent in the handshaping procedure. It was then concluded it is the nature of the reinforcer that gives rise to morphology not the autoshaping procedure per se which gives rise to a particular form of elicited responses. The aim of Experiment 3.1 and 3.2 was to develop a procedure for restricting access to water in laying hens, in order to motivate them sufficiently to respond for water reinforcers. Experiment 3.1 assessed the effect that gradually decreasing time and amount of water access had on food-restricted hens’ water consumption and health. It was found that hens could be restricted to one hr access of water (restricted to the maximum amount that hens would consume when access was ad libitum) without adverse effects to health being apparent. However, when the hens were subsequently exposed to FR schedules with a low response requirement in Experiment 3.2, they did not respond consistently. This indicated that the level of restriction was insufficient to motivate responding and this finding, combined with the difficulty of obtaining ethical approval, meant that the proposed experiments utilising water deprivation as an MO had to be abandoned. Experiment 4.1 used the autoshaping paradigm to assess the…
author: Jackson, Surrey Merryn Kate
keywords: establishing operations, motivating operations, hens, bodyweight, pre-feeding, concurrent schedules, autoshaping
license: https://researchcommons.waikato.ac.nz/bitstreams/2ed4d818-a050-4364-bc25-52d03ccb3867/download
date published: 2017
date modified: 2026-07-24T05:57:24Z
provider: University Waikato
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: University of Waikato