Response Facilitation: Implications for Perceptual Theory, Psychotherapy, Neurophysiology, and Earthquake Prediction

Abstract

There have been numerous naturalistic observations and anecdotal reports of abnormal animal behavior prior to earthquakes. Basic physiological and behavioral data have been brought together with geophysical data to develop a specific explanation to account for how animals could perceive and respond to precursors of impending earthquakes. The behavior predicted provides a reasonable approximation to the reported abnormal behaviors; that is, the behavior appears to be partly reflexive and partly operant. It can best be described as agitated stereotypic behavior. The explanation formulated has substantial implications for perceptual theory, psychotherapy, and neurophysiology, as well as for earthquake prediction. Testable predictions for biology, psychology, and geophysics can be derived from the explanation.