The relation of different levels and kinds of motivation to variability of behavior.

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Abstract
Groups of rats operating under four different motivating conditions, 6-hr. thirst, 22-hr. thirst, light shock, and strong shock, were run through a maze in which there were several equally long routes to the goal. Half of the Ss within each group were shifted, half way through the experiment, to the other motivational level within their type. Later in the expt. a shorter path to the goal was made available. Low motivation Ss within each type of motivation were more variable than high motivation Ss. Approach and avoidance groups overlapped in variability. Increasing strength of motivation led to decreased variability. Decreasing strength of motivation led to increased variability in Ss first run on moderately strong motivation (strong thirst), but not significantly in the case of Ss first run on very high motivation (strong shock). These results seem consonant with a theory that amount of variability is an inverse function of amount of motivation. No reason is seen for postulating a dichotomy of variable and fixated behavior, with different mechanisms for the two types of behavior.
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