Abstract
Studies relating sex differences in the exploration of rats to the degree of deprivation are reviewed. It is concluded that females explore more when satiated than when deprived whereas males explore more when deprived than when satiated. A theory of exploration is described in which the fear aroused by novel stimuli is related to the probability of approach by the animal to these stimuli by a U-shaped function. This theory is used to account for the sex differences in exploration.
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This paper owes much to the stimulating lectures given by Professor A. J. Watson at Cambrige University, England, in 1963. Professor Watson is not responsible for any errors that I may have made in reporting his views. Some of his opinions on other theories of exploration appear in Watson (1961).
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Lester, D. Sex Differences in Exploration: Toward a Theory of Exploration. Psychol Rec 17, 55–62 (1967). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03393689
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03393689