Animal behavioral experiments are basic experimental method used to evaluate the learning and memory of animals and are widely used in physiological and pathological mechanism research and pharmacodynamic evaluation. The assessment method to evaluate the learning and memory behavior of rats can be divided into three categories by the experimental principle: punitive, spontaneous, and rewarding. On the basis of the reward principle and Skinner’ s conditional reflex principle, the reward-directed operant conditioning method provides a more comprehensive and detailed assessment method to assess advanced cognitive functions in the learning and memory of animals, which is particularly suitable to evaluate the cognitive state when performing complex operational tasks under modern high-tech conditions. This study summarizes the development process, experimental devices, experimental method, and application fields of the reward-directed operant conditioning method, providing reference for future research and the application of this method in the field of animal behavioral experiments of learning and memory in China.