Trained 40 normal male albino rats and 40 rats with lesions of the septal region of the forebrain to a criterion of 9/10 avoidance responses in a 2-way conditioned avoidance response (CAR) habit and in a free-choice CAR task. Ss with septal lesions were retarded in learning the 2-way but not the free-choice problem, made more intertrial responses in both situations, and showed a greater tendency to avoid entering a location from which they had just escaped in the free-choice task. It is suggested that Ss with septal lesions are more fearful than normal controls. Differences in these results and those of previous experiments are discussed from the standpoint of this interpretation. (25 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved)