p. K. ANOKHIN 



221 



5. RETURN AFFERENTATION OF THE RESULTS OF CONDITIONED REFLEX ACTION 



The conception of 'return affcrentation' had developed hi our labora- 

 tory long before the cybernetic trend ot thinking led to the formulation of 

 the 'feedback' idea, now being transferred into neurophysiology and 

 proposed for the self-regulating technical systems. 



Studying the problem of compensation of organic functions after the 

 production of cross anastomoses we came to the conclusion that the 

 creation of any new functional system of the organism in place of a 



Fig. 15 



Further development o( the conditioned reflex architecture, hitegratcd cflector excitations 

 reach the functioning organs, and formation of the aciaptive action. 



previous system that has been abolished required constant interference of 

 return afferent impulses from the results of the performed action them- 

 selves. 



The physiological meaning of return atierentation consists in the 

 reflection in minutest afferent impulses of the minutest details of the results 

 of a given action. These results may direct the information to the central 

 nervous system through the most diverse receptor apparatus. However, 

 this af^ercntation as a whole constitutes a peculiar integral which reflects in 

 the stream of afferent impulses the aggregate results of the given reflex 

 action (Anokhin, 1935; Anokhin and Ivanov, 1933). Since it is directed 

 back to the central nervous system to the neural formations just activated 

 we found it most convenient to name it the 'return affcrentation'. 



