Systematic assessment of food item preference and reinforcer effectiveness: Enhancements in training laboratory-housed rhesus macaques

• Published in: Behavioural processes Vol. 157; pp. 445 - 452
• Main Authors: Martin, Allison L., Franklin, Andrea N., Perlman, Jaine E., Bloomsmith, Mollie A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier B.V 01.12.2018; Elsevier Science Ltd
• Subjects: Animal behavior; Animal husbandry; animal performance; Animal training; Animal welfare; Animals; apricots; Beans; Behavior, Animal - physiology; captive animals; Choice Behavior - physiology; Dietary supplements; Effectiveness; Female; food choices; Food preferences; Food Preferences - physiology; grapes; green beans; Humans; Macaca mulatta; Macaca mulatta - physiology; Male; Pasta; Positive reinforcement training; Preference testing; Preferences; Progressive ratio; raisins; Reinforcement; Reinforcement, Psychology; Reinforcer effectiveness; Animal welfare; Animal training; Reinforcer effectiveness; Progressive ratio; Positive reinforcement training; Preference testing
• ISSN: 0376-6357; 1872-8308; 1872-8308
• DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2018.07.002

•A multiple stimulus assessment identified food preferences in rhesus macaques.•The consistency of food preferences across subjects and time was variable.•Using preferred foods increased engagement during husbandry training sessions.•Using preferred foods increased performance in a progressive ratio task. The use of systematic preference assessments can enhance positive reinforcement training with captive animals. We found that the multiple stimulus without replacement (MSWO) technique identified food preferences in laboratory housed rhesus macaques, with raisins and grapes being ranked higher on average than dried apricot, pasta, and green beans (Friedman Test, χ2 (4) = 35.52, p < .001). Agreement between individuals (N = 21) was moderate (Kendall’s W = 0.42), and consistency across time varied among individuals (W = .03–.90). Highly preferred items identified by the MSWO assessment were subsequently found to increase subjects’ engagement in a husbandry task on which they were being trained (Mann-Whitney U = 6.00, p = .002) and to improve performance on a progressive ratio schedule (Wilcoxon signed-rank test, Z = −2.17, p = .03) when compared with low preference items. The progressive ratio technique supplements other preference assessment techniques by measuring the amount of work a subject will do to gain access to an item. The use of more effective reinforcers identified through systematic assessment has the potential to increase animal performance on husbandry and research tasks and to improve animal welfare in the laboratory setting.