PERSEVERANCE REACTIONS IN PRIMATES AND RODENTS 39 



alley No. 2 in 29 trials, alley No. 3 in 17 trials and alley No. 4 

 in 11 trials. 



Alley No. 3 rather than alley No. 4 was chosen as the one 

 through which she would be allowed to escape during her habit 

 forming trials since she had entered the former alley but 14 

 times during her last 20 formal trials, whilst she had entered 

 alley No. 4 22 times, and had entered it 7 times during her 

 ninety-sixth trial. 



Table 10 gives her reactions during the 20 trials that she 

 had before she ceased to try other alleys than the right alley, 

 No. 3. 



TABLE 10 



Alleys Entered by Black Rat 5 During Each of 20 Habit-Forming Trials 

 1st trial— 3 



The table shows that this subject, while forming the habit 

 of trying first and only alley No. 3, entered alley No. 1 19 times, 

 alley No. 2 25 times, alley No 3 20 times and alley No. 4 30 

 times. The repetitive episode in the ninety-sixth trial, already 

 referred to, was probably a factor in determining the relatively 

 frequent attempts to escape by alley No. 4. The significance 

 of this table is contained in the following facts: 



1. A habit of entering alley No. 3 first was formed under con- 

 ditions which rendered such first choice invariably advantageous. 



2. During this subject's 100 formal trials, when the opera- 

 tion of the factor of recency was invariably disadvantageous, she 

 manifested only 17 pure recency first choices and 6 recency- 

 frequency ones. During the 20 habit forming trials under dis- 



