ABSTRACT
The demonstration of central reinforcement, made possible by the use of stereotaxic surgical procedures for the implantation of chronic stimulating electrodes and by the use of operant techniques, provided the major impetus for the study of brain mechanisms of reinforcement and more generally for the study of brain-behavior relationships. Central reinforcement has been demonstrated in several experimental situations, but it has been studied almost exclusively with operant methodology. Extinction occurs less rapidly with central reinforcement when animals are food-deprived. The potency of central reinforcement and the degree to which it may be used to control an animal’s behavior is most clearly demonstrated in test situations involving a choice between conventional reinforcers and reinforcing brain stimulation. Stimulation of central reinforcement sites induces a motive state—it elicits feeding and drinking—so that the animal is more responsive to appropriate external stimuli and its behavior is appropriate to the situation.
