Play soliciting behavior in prepubertal and postpubertal male rats

Thor, Donald H.; Holloway, William R.

doi:10.3758/bf03200028

Cited by 18 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…These data agree with those in rats, for which prepubertal GNX also does not alter the decline in play [16,17]. Unlike in rats [18,19], however, prepubertal GNX increased levels of play in Siberian hamsters at P30 (P<0.004, main effect of GNX, ANOVA).…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 88%

Dissociation of Puberty and Adolescent Social Development in a Seasonally Breeding Species

et al. 2018

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Alongside the development of sexual characteristics and reproductive competence, adolescents undergo marked cognitive, social, and emotional development [1]. A fundamental question is whether these changes are triggered by activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis at puberty (puberty dependent) or whether they occur independently of HPG activation (puberty independent). Disentangling puberty-dependent from puberty-independent mechanisms is difficult because puberty and adolescence typically proceed concurrently. Here, we test a new approach that leverages natural adaptations of a seasonally breeding species to dissociate pubertal status from chronological age. Siberian hamsters (Phodopus sungorus) reared in a long, summer-like day length (LD) exhibit rapid pubertal development, whereas those reared in a short, winter-like day length (SD) delay puberty by several months to synchronize breeding with the following spring [2, 3]. We tested whether the SD-induced delay in puberty delays the peri-adolescent decline in juvenile social play and the rise in aggression that characterizes adolescent social development in many species [4-6] and compared the results to those obtained after prepubertal gonadectomy. Neither SD rearing nor prepubertal gonadectomy altered the age at which hamsters transitioned from play to aggression; SD-reared hamsters completed this transition prior to puberty. SD rearing and prepubertal gonadectomy, however, increased levels of play in male and female juveniles, implicating a previously unknown role for prepubertal gonadal hormones in juvenile social behavior. Levels of aggression were also impacted (decreased) in SD-reared and gonadectomized males. These data demonstrate that puberty-independent mechanisms regulate the timing of adolescent social development, while prepubertal and adult gonadal hormones modulate levels of age-appropriate social behaviors.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 88%

Dissociation of Puberty and Adolescent Social Development in a Seasonally Breeding Species

et al. 2018

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“…The present findings also reveal that while males and females differ in the frequency of play (Thor & Holloway, 1985) in the age-related changes in the fighting tactics used during play fighting (Meaney & Stewart, 1981;Pellis & Pellis, 1990), and in the likelihood that their play fights will escalate into serious fights (Smith, Forgie & Pellis, 1998;Takahashi & Lore, 1983), both sexes become rougher in their play with age. These results are not consistent with the view that following puberty, females find male playmates less appealing because they play too roughly (e.g., Biben, 1986;Fagen, 1981;Meaney & Stewart, 1981;Smith et al, 1998).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 62%

The development of “roughness” in the play fighting of rats: A Laban Movement Analysis perspective

Foroud

Pellis

2002

Developmental Psychobiology

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With increasing age, rats, when play fighting, become rougher. In part, this change can be accounted for by the increasing likelihood of using adult-typical fighting tactics. However, even when using the same tactics, adults appear rougher than juveniles in their play. In this study, videotaped sequences of play fighting in rats from the juvenile (30 days) to the post-pubertal (70 days) period were analyzed using Laban Movement Analysis (LMA). Movement qualities called Effort Factors in LMA captured the character of some of this change. Juveniles tended to use Indulging Efforts, whereas older rats tended to use Condensing Efforts. The latter are related to performing movements that are more controlled. This greater level of control was also evident in the way older rats maintained postural support during play fights. When standing over supine partners, juveniles are more likely to stand on the partner with all four paws, reducing their postural stability, and hence ability to control their partner's movements. Older rats are more likely to place their hind paws on the ground, thus providing a firmer anchor for movements with their upper bodies and forepaws. These age-related changes in behavior were found for both males and females. The findings lend support to a growing body of evidence that play fighting in the juvenile phase of rats is not just a more frequently occurring version of that present in adults, but rather, has unique organizational properties.

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“…Furthermore, even after one member of a pair has bitten the other, the recipient of the bite may begin to attack the partner's nape playfully after 1-2 min. Finally, Thor and Holloway (1985) have shown that playful attack (in what they refer to as play solicitation), decreased with age, even when the partners were treated with scopolamine, a cholinergic antagonist that suppresses playful behavior but not exploration and other activities. Thus, while scopolaminetreated rats do not initiate playful contact, or defend themselves against playful contact directed against them, they remain attractive targets for playful attack by undrugged rats.…”

Section: Age Changes In the Frequency Of Play Fightingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Differential rates of attack, defense, and counterattack during the developmental decrease in play fighting by male and female rats

Pellis

1990

Developmental Psychobiology

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During postweaning development, rats exhibit several well documented trends in their play fighting: (1) It peaks between 30-40 days and then declines with the approach of sexual maturity; (2) males initiate more play fights than females; and (3) the overall complexity of play fights, as expressed by such measures as duration of bouts, also decreases with increasing age. Such trends could arise from changes in attack or defense, or some combination of both. In this article it is shown that (a) the decline in play fighting with the onset of sexual maturity in rats results from a decline in attack, not in defense; (b) the differences in play fighting by male and female rats are due to sex-specific rates of both attack and defense; and (c) the developmental decrease in the complexity of play fighting arises from a decrease in the frequency of counterattacks (i.e., after an animal defends itself, it is less likely to launch an attack). In this way, age and sex differences in play fighting can be traced to differences in its subcomponents.

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Play soliciting behavior in prepubertal and postpubertal male rats

Cited by 18 publications

References 19 publications

Dissociation of Puberty and Adolescent Social Development in a Seasonally Breeding Species

Dissociation of Puberty and Adolescent Social Development in a Seasonally Breeding Species

The development of “roughness” in the play fighting of rats: A Laban Movement Analysis perspective

Differential rates of attack, defense, and counterattack during the developmental decrease in play fighting by male and female rats

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