Instinctive drift, alternately known as instinctual drift, is the tendency of an animal to revert to unconscious and automatic behaviour that interferes with learned behaviour from operant conditioning.

What is instinctual drift in psychology?

Instinctual Drift. Instinctual drift is the tendency of some trained animals to revert back to instinctual behaviors. In other words, they will behave in accordance with evolutionary contingencies, as opposed to the operant contingencies of their training.

What are some examples of instinctive drift?

For example, a dog with the nature to bark at visitors thinking they are intruders might have been taught to sit quietly when a guest enters through reward and punishment. Under stress, however, it may have instinctual drift, disregarding the learned behavior and barking at the guest.