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Gupta TA, Sanabria F. Motivated to time: Effects of reinforcer devaluation and opportunity cost on interval timing. Learn Behav 2023; 51:308-320. [PMID: 36781823 DOI: 10.3758/s13420-023-00572-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/22/2023] [Indexed: 02/15/2023]
Abstract
Prior research suggests that interval timing performance is sensitive to reinforcer devaluation effects and to the rate of competing sources of reinforcement. The present study sought to replicate and account for these findings in rats. A self-paced concurrent fixed-interval (FI) random-ratio (RR) schedule of reinforcement was implemented in which the FI requirement varied across training conditions (12, 24, 48 s). The RR requirement-which imposed an opportunity cost to responding on the FI component-was adjusted so that it took about twice the FI requirement, on average, to complete it. Probe reinforcer devaluation (prefeeding) sessions were conducted at the end of each condition. To assess the effect of contextual reinforcement on timing performance, the RR requirement was removed before the end of the experiment. Consistent with prior findings, performance on the FI component tracked schedule requirement and displayed scalar invariance; the removal of the RR component yielded more premature FI responses. For some rats, prefeeding reduced the number of trials initiated without affecting timing performance; for other rats, prefeeding delayed responding on the FI component but had a weaker effect on trial initiation. These results support the notion that timing and motivational processes are separable, suggesting novel explanations for ostensible motivational effects on timing performance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tanya A Gupta
- Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA.
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
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Fox AE, Nicholson AM, Singha D, Thieret BAS, Ortiz M, Visser EJ. Timing and delay discounting in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: A translational approach. Dev Psychobiol 2023; 65:e22399. [PMID: 37338253 DOI: 10.1002/dev.22399] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2022] [Revised: 03/16/2023] [Accepted: 04/20/2023] [Indexed: 06/21/2023]
Abstract
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common neurodevelopmental disorder that often presents with abnormal time perception and increased impulsive choice behavior. The spontaneously hypertensive rat (SHR) is the most widely used preclinical model of the ADHD-Combined and ADHD-Hyperactive/Impulsive subtypes of the disorder. However, when testing the spontaneously hypertensive rat from Charles River (SHR/NCrl) on timing and impulsive choice tasks, the appropriate control strain is not clear, and it is possible that one of the possible control strains, the Wistar Kyoto from Charles River (WKY/NCrl), is an appropriate model for ADHD-Predominately Inattentive. Our goals were to test the SHR/NCrl, WKY/NCrl, and Wistar (WI; the progenitor strain for the SHR/NCrl and WKY/NCrl) strains on time perception and impulsive choice tasks to assess the validity of SHR/NCrl and WKY/NCrl as models of ADHD, and the validity of the WI strain as a control. We also sought to assess impulsive choice behavior in humans diagnosed with the three subtypes of ADHD and compare them with our findings from the preclinical models. We found SHR/NCrl rats timed faster and were more impulsive than WKY/NCrl and WI rats, and human participants diagnosed with ADHD were more impulsive compared to controls, but there were no differences between the three ADHD subtypes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam E Fox
- Department of Psychology, St. Lawrence University, Canton, New York, USA
| | - Alycia M Nicholson
- Department of Psychology, St. Lawrence University, Canton, New York, USA
| | - Depika Singha
- Department of Psychology, St. Lawrence University, Canton, New York, USA
| | - Bryana A S Thieret
- Department of Psychology, St. Lawrence University, Canton, New York, USA
| | - Marcelo Ortiz
- Department of Psychology, St. Lawrence University, Canton, New York, USA
| | - Emma J Visser
- Department of Psychology, St. Lawrence University, Canton, New York, USA
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Killeen PR. Trace Theory of Perception for Temporal Bisection. TIMING & TIME PERCEPTION 2023. [DOI: 10.1163/22134468-bja10074] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
Abstract
The Trace Theory of Perception (TToP) is applied to temporal interval bisection. In this protocol, after familiarization with the referents for long or short judgments — the endpoints of the range — observers classify probe stimuli ‘short’ or ‘long’ (closer to the short or to the long referent). The midpoint of the range is predicted by TToP to be near and slightly above the geometric mean of the endpoints, and generally independent of signal modality. The observed bisection points, the time at which the probability of a long response is , deviates from those predictions. It was hypothesized that the deviations were caused by the observers’ bias to use categories equally often, which would be accomplished if the bisection point were at the median of the probes. A weighted average of the predicted midpoint and the median accounted for most of the variance in over 100 experiments, and explained the difference between linear and logarithmic spacing of probes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter R. Killeen
- Emeritus Professor; Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281, USA
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Heinrich T, Lappe A, Hanke FD. Beyond the classic sensory systems: Characteristics of the sense of time of harbor seals (Phoca vitulina) assessed in a visual temporal discrimination and a bisection task. Anat Rec (Hoboken) 2021; 305:704-714. [PMID: 34268905 DOI: 10.1002/ar.24715] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2021] [Revised: 04/23/2021] [Accepted: 06/05/2021] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Beyond the classic sensory systems, the sense of time is most likely involved from foraging to navigation. As a prerequisite for assessing the role time is playing in different behavioral contexts, we further characterized the sense of time of a harbor seal in this study. Supra-second time intervals were presented to the seal in a temporal discrimination and a temporal bisection task. During temporal discrimination, the seal needed to discriminate between a standard time interval (STI) and a longer comparison interval. In the bisection task, the seal learnt to discriminate two STIs. Subsequently, it indicated its subjective perception of test time intervals as resembling either the short or long STI more. The seal, although unexperienced regarding timing experiments, learnt both tasks fast. Depending on task, time interval or duration ratio, it achieved a high temporal sensitivity with Weber fractions ranging from 0.11 to 0.26. In the bisection task, the prerequisites for the Scalar Expectancy Theory including a constant Weber fraction, the bisection point lying close to the geometric mean of the STIs, and no significant influence of the STI pair condition on the probability of a long response were met for STIs with a ratio of 1:2, but not with a ratio of 1:4. In conclusion, the harbor seal's sense of time allows precise and complex judgments of time intervals. Cross-species comparisons suggest that principles commonly found to govern timing performance can also be discerned in harbor seals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tamara Heinrich
- Neuroethology, University of Rostock, Institute for Biosciences, Rostock, Germany
| | - Alexander Lappe
- Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Frederike D Hanke
- Neuroethology, University of Rostock, Institute for Biosciences, Rostock, Germany
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Poulin CJ, Fox AE. Preliminary evidence for timing abnormalities in the CNTNAP2 knockout rat. Behav Processes 2021; 190:104449. [PMID: 34175409 DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2021.104449] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2021] [Revised: 06/17/2021] [Accepted: 06/22/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
The CNTNAP2 gene has been implicated in several neuropsychological disorders, including autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and schizophrenia. The CNTNAP2 knockout (KO) rat model, rats without the CNTNAP2 gene, exhibits deficits in social interaction and increases in both repetitive and anxiety-like behaviors. However, deficits in time perception that may underlie several of the neuropsychological disorders implicated have not been investigated. The current study investigated timing in CNTNAP2 KO rats compared to control rats using a discrete-trial temporal bisection task. Results suggested deficits in the timing of relatively long durations in the CNTNAP2 KO rats. This finding is consistent with similar findings previously reported in humans diagnosed with ASD, and is promising for understanding the role that the CNTNAP2 gene may play in timing in certain neuropsychological disorders, and for developing targeted clinical therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cole J Poulin
- Department of Psychology and Program in Neuroscience, St. Lawrence University, United States
| | - Adam E Fox
- Department of Psychology and Program in Neuroscience, St. Lawrence University, United States.
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Timing and Intertemporal Choice Behavior in the Valproic Acid Rat Model of Autism Spectrum Disorder. J Autism Dev Disord 2021; 52:2414-2429. [DOI: 10.1007/s10803-021-05129-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/01/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
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Reyes MB, de Miranda DH, Tunes GC, Cravo AM, Caetano MS. Rats can learn a temporal task in a single session. Behav Processes 2019; 170:103986. [PMID: 31783298 DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2019.103986] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2019] [Revised: 10/14/2019] [Accepted: 10/14/2019] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Fixed interval, peak interval, and temporal bisection procedures have been used to assess cognitive functions and address questions such as how animals perceive, represent, and reproduce time intervals. They have also been extensively used to test the effects of drugs on behavior, and to describe the neural correlates of interval timing. However, those procedures usually require several weeks of training for behavior to stabilize. Here, we investigated a variation of the Differential Reinforcement of Response Duration (DRRD) task with a target time of 1.2 s. We compared three types of training protocols and reported a procedure in which performance by the end of the very first session nearly matches the performance of long-term training. We also showed that the initial distribution of the responses is uni-modal and, as training evolves (and rats improve their performance), a second peak emerges and progressively shifts toward longer times. This one-day training protocol can be used to investigate temporal learning and may be especially useful to electrophysiological and neuropharmacological studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcelo Bussotti Reyes
- Center for Mathematics, Computing and Cognition, Universidade Federal do ABC, São Bernardo do Campo, Brazil.
| | - Diego Henrique de Miranda
- Center for Mathematics, Computing and Cognition, Universidade Federal do ABC, São Bernardo do Campo, Brazil
| | - Gabriela Chiuffa Tunes
- Center for Mathematics, Computing and Cognition, Universidade Federal do ABC, São Bernardo do Campo, Brazil
| | - André Mascioli Cravo
- Center for Mathematics, Computing and Cognition, Universidade Federal do ABC, São Bernardo do Campo, Brazil
| | - Marcelo Salvador Caetano
- Center for Mathematics, Computing and Cognition, Universidade Federal do ABC, São Bernardo do Campo, Brazil; Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia, Sobre Comportamento, Cognição e Ensino, Brazil
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Adaptive learning and forgetting in an unconventional experimental routine. Anim Cogn 2018; 21:315-329. [PMID: 29442251 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-018-1168-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2017] [Revised: 02/06/2018] [Accepted: 02/10/2018] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
Forgetting is often thought of as the inability to remember, but remembering and forgetting allow behavior to adapt to a changing environment in distinct and separable ways. Learning and forgetting were assessed concurrently in two pigeon experiments that involved the same unconventional routine where the schedule of reinforcement changed every session. Sessions were run back-to-back with a 23-h mid-session break such that in a single visit to the testing chamber, a pigeon completed the second half of one session and the first half of the next. The beginning of a new session was either signaled or unsignaled. Experiment 1 involved concurrent variable-interval variable-interval schedules with four possible reinforcer ratios. Response allocation was sensitive to the richer schedule and was retained through the mid-session break. Experiment 2 involved peak interval schedules of varying durations. Temporal discrimination was rapidly acquired before and after the mid-session break, but not retained. Signaling the session change decreased control by past contingencies in both experiments, demonstrating that learning and forgetting can be investigated separately. These results suggest that the temporal structure of training, such as multiple short daily sessions instead of one long session, can meaningfully impact measurement of animals' capacity to forget and remember.
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