Play-solicitation behavior in juvenile male and female rats

Play-solicitation and social investigatory behaviors were observed in male and female juvenile rats exposed to playful and nonplayful juvenile social stimuli. A nonplayful state was induced by treatment with scopolamine HBr. In Experiment 1, the play-solicitation behavior of males exposed to nonplayful stimuli was reliably greater than that of females; social investigation did not differ by gender. In Experiment 2, males and females were exposed to nonplayful male and female stimuli. Male subjects engaged in more soliciting than did female subjects, and male social stimuli were subjected to more soliciting than were female social stimuli. Experiment 3 compared the influence of varying social deprivation intervals on play soliciting by male juveniles. Although social investigation did not vary reliably with interval of social deprivation, play soliciting increased reliably with longer intervals of isolation. In Experiment 4, play-soliciting behavior of males exposed to nonplayful males correlated positively and reliably with play fighting behavior upon exposure to normally playful males. The results support the proposal that some specific behaviors functionally provoke interactive play fighting.     

Frustration and sexual behavior in male rats

Frustration is an emotional state produced by the surprising omission in quantity and/or quality of an appetitive reinforcer. The aversive properties of stressors, such as electric shocks, produce responses similar to those elicited by a state of frustration. In this set of three experiments, we assessed the effects of water immersion (WIM, in Experiment 1)—that is, a physical stressor—and first (in Experiments 1 and 2) and second trials of a consummatory extinction (cE; i.e., a surprising reward omission; in Experiment 3) on the sexual behavior of male rats, as compared with nonstressed animals. The results showed a sexual deficit in the animals subjected to either WIM or cE, relative to control subjects, although these experimental conditions differed in the component of the male sexual response that was affected. The present results accord with the fear = frustration hypothesis, and with Amsel’s frustration theory.     

Environmental factors influencing the affiliative behavior of male and female rats (Rattus norvegicus)

Three experiments were conducted to investigate the influence of rearing and housing manipulations on the affiliative behavior of male and female rats. Animals were tested in same-sex pairs in an open field for time spent in contact and for socially facilitated activity. The results revealed a sex difference in both the degree and the form of affiliative behavior of rats. In general, males were more affiliative and more responsive to a second animal. Males engaged in more rough-and-tumble play, whereas females spent more time in social grooming. Housing conditions of adult animals and rearing conditions were found to influence the degree to which males engaged in male-like affiliative behaviors and females engaged in female-like affiliative behaviors. Social behavior appears to be a function of the interaction between the affiliative repertoire of the animals involved, the nature of the social stimulus, and the features of the environment.     

Sex pheromones and aggressive behavior in male rats

Two experiments were performed to examine the relationships among the sexual cycle of the female, sex pheromones, and the agonistic behavior of male rats. Data suggest that the presence of an inaccessible sexually receptive female provokes increased intermale fighting. The present research investigated the possibility that a sex pheromone from the female mediates the change in male hostilities. In Experiment 1, a combination between-subject and within-subject design was used to expose half the males to the female by several sensory modalities. The other males were exposed to the female primarily by olfaction. In Experiment 2, a completely between-subject design was used to expose some males only to the soiled bedding of the female. The results suggest that olfaction is sufficient to increase the male’s aggressiveness in the presence of an estrous female, although additional sensory input, such as the female’s movements, may be necessary to produce the full aggression-inducing effect.     

Play soliciting behavior in prepubertal and postpubertal male rats

Pre- and postpubertal play soliciting behavior was observed in intact males, castrate males, sham-operated males, and female controls. Although play soliciting decreased markedly with age in all groups, male treatment groups did not differ reliably on pre- or postpubertal tests. Males, however, engaged in reliably greater play soliciting than females on all measures in both preand postpubertal tests. These results suggest that the major decrease in social play associated with the attainment of sexual maturity is apparent in the play soliciting behavior of both sexes and may be attributed to maturation effects other than that associated with gonadal hormones. The results are discussed in reference to organizational and activational effects of male gonadal hormones on measures of social play behavior.     

Defensive burying in rats and hamsters

Hooded rats and golden hamsters were shocked by one of two prods in a chamber with a sawdust-covered floor. Rats buried the prod through which they had been shocked, but hamsters displayed no burying behavior. Hamsters may not have buried the prod because they could not perform the required motor pattern. However, hamsters can carry and pile food pellets. Therefore, in a second experiment, rats and hamsters were shocked in a chamber with wooden blocks on the floor. Rats piled blocks around the prod through which they had been shocked, but hamsters did not. The third experiment established that, like rats, hamsters can associate a prod with shock in one trial, since they showed differential avoidance of a prod through which they had been shocked. Since hamsters are nonsocial and rats are social, these results are consistent with suggestions that burying sources of aversive stimulation evolved as an altruistic behavior.     

Activity differences of individually and group-housed male and female rats

Previous comparisons of the activity differences of individually and group-housed rats have produced inconsistent findings; therefore, we examined activity using three measures: open-field ambulation, nonspecific circadian activity, and rearing behavior. Open-field ambulation in two 5-day tests confirmed our prediction that isolates would be initially less active but later more active than group-housed rats. Isolates habituated more slowly to the activity monitor and tended to be more active during the light half of the 24-h cycle. In the rearing test, isolates showed elevated and more persistent activity than group-housed rats. All these activity differences were prevalent in both male and female rats. The results are interpreted in terms of the influence of differential housing on “fear responses,” exploration of a novel environment, and differences in habituation/adaptation processes.     

Fearfulness in female and male cats

Cats were observed in four moderately frightening novel situations. One of 12 response measures indicated that females are more fearful than males, 1 indicated that males are more fearful than females, and the remaining 10 measures revealed no significant difference between males and females. The results thus yield no evidence of any large and consistent difference in fear between female and male cats. Gonadal hormones do not determine any single pattern of sex difference in fearfulness in different species of mammals. Species-specific patterns of social organization may predict sex differences in fear in studied species more accurately than endocrine factors.     

Spatial matching and nonmatching in male and female Wistar rats: Effects of delay-interval duration

Male and female Wistar rats were trained in a delayed matching-to-position procedure in which one of the two levers (sample) was presented. Pressing this lever resulted in its retraction and began a delay interval of random variable duration, which terminated with the occurrence of the first nose poke in the pellet retrieval unit after the delay interval had expired. Both levers were then inserted into the chamber, and food became available when the subject pressed the lever that had previously been pressed (matching response). When the subject failed to make a matching response, time out (5 sec) was presented. In the next experimental condition, nonmatching was reinforced. Males and females required an equal number of trials to attain 80% accuracy during three consecutive sessions under matching and nonmatching conditions. Response accuracy decreased as the delay interval increased, during both conditions. Differences between the sexes were not observed, suggesting that memory functions in male and female rats may only differ when other behavioral differences between the sexes are allowed to interfere with the assessment of memory functioning.     

Characteristics of male and female science teachers

The characteristics of 273 male science teachers were compared with 72 female science teachers randomly selected from a fourteen-state region in the USA. A multivariate analysis of variance found differences between the two groups significant at the p ? 0.0005 level. Female teachers were higher on measures of interest in science and receptivity to change. Males scored higher on science knowledge indicators and on their perceptions of the teaching support they received. No differences were noted on measures of professional development or their perceptions of teaching effectiveness, curriculum, workload, or facilities. The implications of the findings are discussed in terms of science career selection by women.     

Employment-related differences between male and female school psychologists

A total of 636 full-time school psychologist practitioners in Pennsylvania were surveyed and asked to complete a demographic data form and to estimate the actual percentage of time they spent in assessment, counseling, consultation, research, clerical tasks, and administrative tasks, and the amount of time they desired to spend in each of these roles. No statistically significant differences were found between male and female school psychologists in actual time spent in various roles or the time desired to be spent in various roles. Male school psychologists were found to work longer contract lengths and to make more money than their female counterparts. When monthly salaries were compared (adjusted for differences in contract length), statistically significant salary differences between male and female school psychologists were found.     

Early childhood teachers' affectionate behavior: Differential expression to female children,male children,and groups of children

This study examined differences in (1) the amount of affectionate behavior that early childhood teachers expressed to individuals versus groups of children and (2) the amount of affection that teachers expressed to female and male children. Data were collected by conducting naturalistic observations of 47 female teachers in six day care centers. Teachers' affectionate behavior and the types of recipients were recorded. The behaviors observed were smiling, affectionate words, active affectionate physical contact, and passive affectionate physical contact. The data were converted to percentages and subjected to parametric multivariate analyses of variance. The teachers were found to express more affection to female children than to male children and more affection to individual children than to groups of children. Implications for teacher training and early childhood programs are discussed.     

女性旅游者的旅游行为及营销策略

对女性旅游的旅游行为的结果分析显示，旅游产品和服务的设计可根据女性旅游的需要，采取相应的营销策略，以便更好地吸引女性旅游和提高她们的满意程度。     

Spontaneous activities of female versus male newborns

This study explored potential sex differences in all activity spontaneously emitted by newborns. 2 groups of full-term infants (14 uncircumcised males, 15 females), equally distributed along several physical and demographic variables, served as subjects. Each newborn was observed for a total of 8 hours during the 2 days following birth. Observational procedures were stringently controlled and interobserver reliability ranged from .84 to .98. Results showed higher levels of wakefulness, facial grimacing, and low-intensity motor activity for males. Of marginal significance, both low-intensity and high-intensity oral activity was higher for males. In addition, a marginally significant interaction effect (sex X interfeeding interval X day) was found for high-intensity oral activity (crying). Independent of sex, high-intensity activity increased in the evening and over an interfeeding period, and low-intensity oral activity increased over days. The pattern of results indicates that even uncircumcised males may be slightly more irritable than females, and thus more active. Potential implications of these findings are considered.     

The development of intruder attack in colonies of laboratory rats

Most attacks by rat colony members on strange intruders are made by a single dominant male. Such dominance, and the attack behaviors themselves, develop in a relatively fixed sequence over sessions with strange intruders. The entire sequence of attack on intruders occurs earlier in the intruder sessions for older rat colonies than in those for newly established colonies: conversely, more attack is seen in colonies with prior intruder experience than for intruder-naive colonies of equivalent age. Thus both experience within the colony and specific experience with strange intruders influence the rate of development of attack on intruders by dominant colony rats.