Inelastic Preference for Ethanol in Rats: An Analysis of Ethanol's Reinforcing Effects

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Abstract
This experiment evaluated the relationship between availability of ethanol and preference for ethanol in rats. One dipper served a mixture of 10% ethanol and 10% sucrose, and a second dipper served 10% sucrose. In the first condition, access to each dipper was governed by a variable-interval 5-s schedule. In subsequent conditions, the interval requirement for the ethanol mixture was increased to 30 s. However, increases in the interval requirement did not decrease preference for ethanol. Instead, preference increased somewhat or remained about the same. In contrast, when both dippers served sucrose, increases in the interval requirement at one dipper systematically shifted preference to the other dipper. Analysis showed that preference for ethanol was correlated with amount of ethanol consumed, whereas preference for sucrose was correlated with changes in the reinforcement contingencies. Ethanol's food value, as measured by calories, did not predict preference. Rather, the results were most simply explained by the theory that ethanol's pharmacological consequences maintained responding.

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