Ever seen a dog trained to fetch the newspaper suddenly start burying it instead? Animal behavior is a fascinating mix of learned behaviors and innate instincts, often leading to unexpected outcomes. Understanding how these forces interact is crucial for trainers, researchers, and anyone interested in animal behavior, as it can profoundly impact training effectiveness and even the survival of species in changing environments.
One particularly interesting phenomenon is instinctive drift, where learned behaviors gradually give way to an animal's natural instincts, even after consistent training. This can be frustrating, humorous, or even dangerous, depending on the situation. Understanding why instinctive drift occurs and how to potentially mitigate its effects is critical for anyone working closely with animals, whether it's training your pet, conducting research, or managing wildlife.
Which of the following is an example of instinctive drift?
What behaviors demonstrate instinctive drift overriding learned behaviors?
Instinctive drift manifests as the gradual and eventual substitution of learned, trained behaviors with an animal's innate, species-typical behaviors, even when those innate behaviors interfere with the learned task. The animal reverts to its instincts despite continued training or reinforcement designed to maintain the learned behavior. This occurs because the instinctual behaviors are often related to survival or reproduction and are thus deeply ingrained.
Instinctive drift happens because an animal's natural instincts are evolutionarily advantageous and often more potent than learned associations, particularly when the learned behavior is not directly related to the animal's natural survival mechanisms. For example, a pig trained to deposit tokens in a piggy bank might eventually start rooting at the tokens on the ground instead. Rooting is a natural foraging behavior for pigs, and this instinct can override the learned behavior of depositing tokens. Similarly, a raccoon trained to pick up coins might start rubbing the coins together and dipping them in water, reminiscent of how they handle food in the wild to "wash" it. Essentially, the closer a learned behavior is to an animal’s natural behavior patterns, the more likely it is to be maintained. Conversely, the more artificial or unnatural the task, the higher the probability of instinctive drift occurring. This principle highlights the limitations of operant conditioning when applied to complex behaviors that conflict with an animal's ingrained tendencies.How does an animal's natural food-seeking behavior relate to instinctive drift examples?
An animal's natural food-seeking behavior is a prime source of instinctive drift because these deeply ingrained patterns can override learned behaviors, especially when the learned task conflicts with the animal's innate foraging instincts. Instinctive drift occurs when a conditioned response gradually reverts back to the animal's natural, instinctual behaviors, particularly those related to survival like acquiring food.
Instinctive drift highlights the limitations of operant conditioning and other behavioral training methods. While animals can be taught to perform tasks that are unnatural to them, the power of their instincts related to survival, including food acquisition, can disrupt these learned behaviors. For example, if a pig is trained to deposit tokens in a piggy bank for food, it may eventually revert to rooting behavior, using its snout to push and dig at the tokens instead of dropping them. This happens because rooting is a natural foraging behavior for pigs, and the association of tokens with food triggers this instinct. Food-seeking behaviors are particularly potent in the context of instinctive drift because they are often hardwired into an animal's nervous system and linked to strong motivational drives. The strength of these instincts can vary depending on the species and the specific behavior. The closer the learned task is to the animal's natural behaviors, the less likely instinctive drift is to occur. However, when there's a significant conflict between the learned behavior and the instinctual behavior, the instinct will often win out.In what training scenarios might instinctive drift be most apparent?
Instinctive drift is most apparent in training scenarios where the conditioned behavior clashes with an animal's deeply ingrained, species-specific behaviors, particularly when the conditioned task is repeatedly performed over extended periods or when the animal is under stress or highly aroused.
Instinctive drift surfaces when an animal, despite successful initial training, gradually reverts to performing behaviors that are natural to it, interfering with the learned response. For example, if you're training a pig to deposit a coin in a piggy bank, its rooting behavior (using its snout to dig) might eventually override the trained behavior of carrying the coin, especially if the training involves food rewards near the "bank." The rooting behavior is a strong, innate drive for the pig, and its association with food during training can inadvertently strengthen this instinct, causing it to displace the trained behavior. Furthermore, the complexity and artificiality of the training task can contribute to instinctive drift. The more unnatural the requested behavior, the higher the likelihood that an animal will eventually fall back on its innate repertoire. Scenarios involving repetitive tasks also increase the chances of observing instinctive drift, as the animal experiences continued exposure to stimuli that trigger its natural instincts. The intensity and method of reinforcement used during training are contributing factors. Overly strong reinforcement or reinforcement schedules that inadvertently reward instinctive behaviors can exacerbate the problem.What distinguishes instinctive drift from simple forgetting of a trained task?
Instinctive drift differs from simple forgetting in that it involves the *replacement* of a learned behavior with an innate, species-typical behavior, even after the learned behavior was well-established. Forgetting is simply the decay or loss of a previously learned behavior due to disuse, lack of reinforcement, or interference, without the intrusion of instinctual patterns. Instinctive drift highlights the power of biological predispositions overriding learned associations, while forgetting reflects a failure in memory or performance.
Instinctive drift demonstrates the limitations of operant conditioning when an animal's natural instincts conflict with the trained behavior. For example, a pig trained to carry a wooden block might start tossing it in the air and rooting at it with its snout, behaviors associated with food-seeking instincts. This isn't mere forgetting; the pig is actively reverting to its ingrained behavioral repertoire. Forgetting, conversely, would be evident if the pig simply stopped carrying the block, showing a decline in performance over time without displaying these instinctual rooting behaviors. The key difference lies in the *active* displacement of the learned behavior by an instinctual one, signaling that the animal's innate tendencies are interfering with and reshaping the learned response. Consider also the time scale. Forgetting might occur gradually over a prolonged period if the training is discontinued. Instinctive drift, however, can emerge even *after* a period of successful training and maintenance of the learned behavior. The strength of the instinct and its relevance to the training context play a crucial role. The closer the trained behavior is to an animal's natural inclinations, the less likely instinctive drift will occur. However, if the training conflicts significantly with deeply ingrained instincts, those instincts are likely to resurface and disrupt the trained behavior, distinguishing it from simple memory decay.Can you explain an example of instinctive drift in domesticated animals?
An excellent example of instinctive drift is seen in pigs trained to deposit tokens into a piggy bank. While pigs can be successfully trained to perform this task, they often begin to root at the tokens instead of dropping them into the bank. This rooting behavior is a deeply ingrained, instinctive behavior related to foraging for food, and it interferes with the learned behavior of depositing the tokens.
Instinctive drift occurs when an animal's innate behaviors override behaviors learned through operant conditioning. Even with reinforcement schedules, the power of these instincts can disrupt the training process. The Brelands, who coined the term, observed this phenomenon across a variety of species they trained for entertainment and advertising purposes. They found that no matter how much training the animals received, and regardless of the rewards, the animals would eventually revert back to performing species-typical behaviors that interfered with the trained response. The pig example is particularly illustrative because it highlights how a seemingly simple task can be complicated by an animal's evolutionary history. Pigs are natural foragers, and rooting is a key component of their foraging strategy. The tokens, to a pig, become objects to be investigated using their rooting instinct. The longer the training continues, the more likely the pig is to succumb to this innate behavior, overriding the learned behavior of depositing the token. This demonstrates that training must take into account the animal's natural predispositions to be truly effective.How does an animal's species affect its susceptibility to instinctive drift?
An animal's species significantly impacts its susceptibility to instinctive drift because each species possesses a unique set of genetically ingrained behaviors and predispositions. These species-specific instincts can either facilitate or hinder the learning of behaviors required for operant conditioning, making some species more prone to instinctive drift than others.
The strength and relevance of specific instincts within a species determine how likely those instincts are to override learned behaviors. For instance, pigs, with their strong rooting instinct, are highly susceptible to drifting back to rooting behaviors even when trained to perform other tasks, regardless of the reward. Similarly, chickens, with their instinctive pecking behavior, may struggle to learn tasks that require them to inhibit pecking. Species whose natural behaviors strongly conflict with the desired trained behavior will exhibit more pronounced instinctive drift. Furthermore, the evolutionary history and ecological niche of a species also contribute. Species that have evolved to rely heavily on certain fixed action patterns for survival are more likely to exhibit those patterns, even in artificial environments, leading to instinctive drift. Breeds developed for particular tasks may also show predispositions related to those tasks. Understanding a species' natural behavior patterns is crucial for predicting and mitigating the effects of instinctive drift in training scenarios.Is instinctive drift more common in certain types of conditioned responses?
Yes, instinctive drift is more commonly observed in conditioned responses that are closely related to an animal's natural, species-specific behaviors, particularly those associated with feeding, mating, or predator avoidance. Conditioned responses that conflict with these ingrained behaviors are more susceptible to disruption by instinctive drift.
Instinctive drift occurs when an animal's innate behaviors compete with learned behaviors acquired through conditioning. This interference is more pronounced when the conditioned response requires the animal to suppress or override a strong, evolutionarily significant instinct. For instance, teaching a pig to deposit a wooden coin in a piggy bank (as in the Brelands' original experiment) is challenging because the pig's natural rooting behavior, related to foraging for food, is a powerful instinct that conflicts with the required action. The pig is more likely to revert to pushing the coin along the ground with its snout, resembling its natural rooting behavior. Conversely, conditioning an animal to perform a behavior that aligns with its natural tendencies is less likely to be affected by instinctive drift. Consider training a dog to fetch. Retrieving objects can be seen as an extension of the dog's predatory instincts (chasing and carrying prey), making the conditioned behavior more easily maintained and less prone to disruption by conflicting innate drives. The closer the conditioned behavior is to the animal's natural repertoire, the stronger the learned association and the less likely instinctive drift will undermine the training.Hopefully, that clears up the concept of instinctive drift for you! Thanks for taking the time to learn a bit more about it, and feel free to swing by again if you're curious about other quirky psychological phenomena or anything else related to behavior and learning. We're always happy to have you!