Abstract
Frey and Spector (1976) suggested that the dopamine (DA) systems of the brain may be involved in the mediation of electromagnetic energy effects. It was hypothesized that a measure of emotionality that involves the DA systems, the conditioned emotional response (CER), would be modified by exposure of an animal to a 60-Hz electrical field. This was tested with animals that lived in a 3.5-kV/m field. Significant differences appeared between exposed and sham-exposed groups in leverpressing rates during the silent periods. During the 8 days of CER testing, the mean number of silent-period leverpresses for the exposed group was half that for the sham-exposed group. Significant differences were also found in the suppression ratio, with the exposed animals exhibiting increased suppression of response during the warning signal. Living in a 3.5-kV/m 60-Hz electrical field appears to increase emotionality as defined by this test.
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Frey, A.H., Wesler, L.S. Modification of the conditioned emotional response in animals living in a 60-Hz electrical field. Bull. Psychon. Soc. 22, 477–479 (1984). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03333883
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03333883