E. Valenstein, M. L. Weber
1965
Citations
0
Influential Citations
68
Citations
Journal
Journal of comparative and physiological psychology
Abstract
Saccharin, a sweet-tasting but nonnutritive substance, has been used in numerous studies to test the validity of theories which emphasize the importance of a reduction of biological needs for learning. The essential features of the argument may be expressed as follows: Animals prefer a saccharin solution to water and a saccharin solution is an adequate reward in learning experiments (Hausmann, 1933; Sheffield & Roby, 1950) in spite of the fact that this substance is nonnutritive and passes through the body unchanged chemically. Sheffield and Roby (1950), e.g., regarded their saccharin studies as