Operant suppression of electrodermal response rate as a function of punishment schedule

Replicated the H. J. Johnson and G. E. Schwartz (see 42:1) finding that a brief period of continuous punishment of the spontaneous electrodermal response with an aversive tone reduces response frequency to approximately 50% of operant level. Less suppression was found under a partial schedule in which every 2nd response was punished. The experiment, using 20 university students and employees, employed a 2 * 2 factorial design with continuous vs. partial punishment and contingent vs. yoked aversive stimulation as the factors. The analysis was based on response frequencies during a 20-min extinction test period following a 20-min treatment period. Results showed contingent-yoked differences to be greater under the continuous than under the partial schedule. No recovery from suppression was observed during extinction in either condition. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved).