puzzle box

American  

noun

Psychology.

1. an enclosure, used in experiments in animal learning, from which an animal must escape or in which it must manipulate various devices.

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Etymology

Origin of puzzle box

First recorded in 1865–70

Example Sentences

“Alice in Borderland” presents a more straightforward premise in the form of a puzzle box narrative.

From Salon

Danielle Trussoni’s “The Puzzle Box” received the award for mystery/thriller.

From Los Angeles Times

Using an automated puzzle box system they developed, the team designed an experiment to test this immigration hypothesis.

From Science Daily

Each group was provided a tutor which was trained to access food from a puzzle box by either pushing the door left or right.

From Science Daily

Not only did immigrants see that residents were opening the puzzle box in a new way, but in some groups, the newcomers also discovered that residents scored a superior reward by doing so.

From Science Daily