The Exploratory Drive of the Rat

Ever since the white rats were introduced into the psychology laboratory, they have been known to possess a tendency to explore their immediate surroundings, sniffing at the objects and walls on the way and investigating every spot which is new and unfamiliar. These manifestations of exploration and curiosity have been noted all along, but research on exploration as a motive began with Nissen(11) in 1930 who tried to measure its strength with the obstruction apparatus, to compare it with the strength of other drives, using as incentive a modified form of the Dashiell(4) maze. As result, he found a certain amount of this drive in the absence of any of the homeostatic drives; the rats would overcome the obstruction in order to get the opportunity to explore the maze.