Infantile behavioural reactivity to oestrous chemostimuli in Norway rats

Fillion, Thomas J.; Blass, Elliott M.

doi:10.1016/0003-3472(86)90014-x

Cited by 18 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…Only those pups that were exposed to the artificial scent before and after parturition successfully attached to the nipples treated with this odor. Thus, nipple attachment was determined by the artificial olfactory manipula-tion (Fillion & Blass 1986a). The artificial scent also affected later sexual behavior.…”

Section: Conditioning Of Nursing In Neonatesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Thus, rats' avoidance of painful footshock was reconceptualized as an unlearned antipredator reaction that sometimes could be modified by experience (Bolles 1970). Also, many attempts at positive reinforcement were rendered ambiguous and limited in scope once the existence of animals' unlearned species-typical behavior, and their shifts in attention, were appreciated (Breland & Breland 1961;Bronstein 1981;1986a;Collier 1982;Collier et al 1972;Moore & Stuttard 1979;Staddon & Simmelhag 1971). In sum, many of the best known assays of learning were inadequately sensitive, that is, not adequate for differentiating learned and unlearned components of behavior.…”

Section: Ecological Heuristics For Learningmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Pavlovian feed-forward mechanisms in the control of social behavior

Domjan¹,

Cusato²,

Villarreal³

2000

Behav Brain Sci

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The conceptual and investigative tools for the analysis of social behavior can be expanded by integrating biological theory, control systems theory, and Pavlovian conditioning. Biological theory has focused on the costs and benefits of social behavior from ecological and evolutionary perspectives. In contrast, control systems theory is concerned with how machines achieve a particular goal or purpose. The accurate operation of a system often requires feed-forward mechanisms that adjust system performance in anticipation of future inputs. Pavlovian conditioning is ideally suited to subserve this function in behavioral systems. Pavlovian mechanisms have been demonstrated in various aspects of sexual behavior, maternal lactation, and infant suckling. Pavlovian conditioning of agonistic behavior has been also reported, and Pavlovian processes may likewise be involved in social play and social grooming. Several further lines of evidence indicate that Pavlovian conditioning can increase the efficiency and effectiveness of social interactions, thereby improving their cost/benefit ratio. We extend Pavlovian concepts beyond the traditional domain of discrete secretory and other physiological reflexes to complex real-world behavioral interactions and apply abstract laboratory analyses of the mechanisms of associative learning to the daily challenges animals face as they interact with one another in their natural environments.

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Section: Conditioning Of Nursing In Neonatesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Ecological Heuristics For Learningmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pavlovian feed-forward mechanisms in the control of social behavior

Domjan¹,

Cusato²,

Villarreal³

2000

Behav Brain Sci

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“…3 (litters 5 and 6; n = 16). These odor sources were chosen as rat pups have been found to be attracted to the smell of estrus but not di-estrus females (Fillion and Blass 1986). Furthermore, 6-methyl-5-hepten-2-one (methylheptenone) has been shown to be a significant part of the estrus smell (Nielsen et al 2013), and both this molecule and 1-hexanol (herb odor) are present in rat feces (Nielsen et al 2011).…”

Section: Odorant Choice Testmentioning

confidence: 99%

Using Scalar Products to Refine the Interpretative Value of an Orientation Choice Test

Meunier¹,

Nielsen²

2014

Chemical Senses

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Choice tests, which are often used to examine animal preferences, can be difficult to interpret when no clear choice has been made or when using very young animals which exclude test repetition. We present a new method to evaluate the behavior in a choice test based on the orientation of the animal and illustrate its use when facing those conditions. Using rat pups in an open field maze with a choice of odors, we obtained x,y coordinates of 2 markers (head and body center) using a video-tracking freeware. Two vectors were calculated: an animal orientation vector (body to head) and a perfect orientation vector (body to odor source). The angle between the 2 vectors in each frame was converted into a scalar product ranging from 1 (pup oriented directly towards the odor source) to -1 (facing the opposite direction). A mean scalar product was calculated for each odor source, with the difference between the 2 mean scalar products indicating degree of preference for an odor. The information provided by the mean scalar product difference (MSPD) could not be obtained from other measures, such as binary choice, velocity, or distance moved. The MSPD provides a single, noncategorical value for each animal to describe degree of preference in a choice test. This variable was more effective in differentiating animals, thus allowing a reduction in the number of animals or tests necessary to reach significance.

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“…Rat mothers elicit nipple attachment by placing amniotic fluid on their nipples (Teicher & Blass 1977;Blass 1990). Thus, nipple attachment was determined by the artificial olfactory manipula-tion (Fillion & Blass 1986a). This mechanism shows considerable plasticity.…”

Section: Conditioning Of Nursing In Neonatesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Moreover, research was revealing that, although associative learning certainly occurred, the quality of associations would depend dramatically on the ecological problems that were naturally encountered by the subjects, with these problems represented by the specific apparatuses, stimuli, and responses used in laboratory studies (see Blanchard et al 1989;Bouton & Fanselow 1997;Braveman & Bronstein 1985;Hinde & Stevenson-Hinde 1973;and Seligman & Hager 1972 for overviews. Also, many attempts at positive reinforcement were rendered ambiguous and limited in scope once the existence of animals' unlearned species-typical behavior, and their shifts in attention, were appreciated (Breland & Breland 1961;Bronstein 1981;1986a;Collier 1982;Collier et al 1972;Moore & Stuttard 1979;Staddon & Simmelhag 1971). Thus, rats' avoidance of painful footshock was reconceptualized as an unlearned antipredator reaction that sometimes could be modified by experience (Bolles 1970).…”

Section: Ecological Heuristics For Learningmentioning

confidence: 99%

An integrative approach to the modeling of behavior

Timberlake¹,

Pecoraro²,

Tinsley³

2000

Behav Brain Sci

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IntroductionMany of the things that animals do, they do together. This makes the analysis of social behavior a central problem in behavioral science. Our goal in this target article is to expand the conceptual and investigative tools that are used in the analysis of social behavior by integrating three different theoretical perspectives: biological theory, control systems theory, and learning theory (in the form of Pavlovian conditioning). We discuss how the integration of these three perspectives provides insights into important proximate mechanisms of social behavior that increase the efficiency and effectiveness of social interactions.The three theoretical approaches addressed in this paper have developed mostly independently of one another, and two of the three (control theory and learning theory) have had little to say about social behavior. The biological approach has focused on ecological and genetic factors that shape social behavior but has largely ignored the role of learning or learned associations. Control systems theory developed as a discipline in engineering, and although it has been used in the analysis of some biological systems (e.g., McFarland 1971), it has not been extended to social behavior. Pavlovian conditioning theory originated in investi-gations of digestive physiology and since then has been applied to a variety of other areas including cardiovascular and immune functioning, placebo effects, substance abuse, ingestive behavior, and language and memory (Hollis 1997; Abstract: The conceptual and investigative tools for the analysis of social behavior can be expanded by integrating biological theory, control systems theory, and Pavlovian conditioning. Biological theory has focused on the costs and benefits of social behavior from ecological and evolutionary perspectives. In contrast, control systems theory is concerned with how machines achieve a particular goal or purpose. The accurate operation of a system often requires feed-forward mechanisms that adjust system performance in anticipation of future inputs. Pavlovian conditioning is ideally suited to subserve this function in behavioral systems. Pavlovian mechanisms have been demonstrated in various aspects of sexual behavior, maternal lactation, and infant suckling. Pavlovian conditioning of agonistic behavior has been also reported, and Pavlovian processes may likewise be involved in social play and social grooming. Several further lines of evidence indicate that Pavlovian conditioning can increase the efficiency and effectiveness of social interactions, thereby improving their cost/benefit ratio. We extend Pavlovian concepts beyond the traditional domain of discrete secretory and other physiological reflexes to complex real-world behavioral interactions and apply abstract laboratory analyses of the mechanisms of associative learning to the daily challenges animals face as they interact with one another in their natural environments.Abstract: While feed-forward mechanisms may be ubiquitous in biological systems that form the substrat...

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Infantile behavioural reactivity to oestrous chemostimuli in Norway rats

Cited by 18 publications

References 25 publications

Pavlovian feed-forward mechanisms in the control of social behavior

Pavlovian feed-forward mechanisms in the control of social behavior

Using Scalar Products to Refine the Interpretative Value of an Orientation Choice Test

An integrative approach to the modeling of behavior

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