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Cheng RK, Liao RM. Investigating Temporal Memory Strength and Time-Based Impulse Control Using the DRL Task. TIMING & TIME PERCEPTION 2022. [DOI: 10.1163/22134468-bja10064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Differential reinforcement of low rate (DRL) responding is a schedule-controlled behavior sometimes used in timing research, but also received critics of not providing a pure measure of timing due to the influence of the subject’s motivation or inhibitory control. Nevertheless, we argue that the DRL task provides a unique approach to study how timing and emotion interact with each other. Here, we review evidence showing that male rats prenatally treated with choline supplementation had difficulty in acquiring longer criterion times in the DRL task. This was possibly due to the stronger memory strength of their previously learned shorter criterion times. Female rats, in contrast, performed better than male rats in the same task, but those receiving prenatal choline supplementation were the best performers in this task with longer criterion times because they required less training. Like all female rats, male rats treated with prenatal choline supplementation made very few burst responses, suggesting that the treatment improved male rats’ emotional regulation when facing ‘frustrating’ outcomes. The differential impulse control plus different memory strength of the rats trained in the DRL task revealed the potential interaction of sex hormones and prenatal choline supplementation, a rare combination in a single animal study on timing and time perception. In summary, although the DRL task is certainly not the best timing task, it may be useful in assisting us in better understanding how time perception participates in emotional regulation, especially relevant when the emotion is triggered by a failure in timing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruey-Kuang Cheng
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Ruey-Ming Liao
- Department of Psychology, National Cheng-Chi University, Taipei 11605, Taiwan
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Cheng-Chi University, Taipei, Taiwan
- Research Center for Mind, Brain and Learning, National Cheng-Chi University, Taipei, Taiwan
- Department of Psychology, Asian University, Taichung, Taiwan
- Department of Medical Research, China Medical University Hospital, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan
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