Using a runway paradigm to assess the relative strength of rats' motivations for enrichment objects

Hanmer, L. A., Riddell, P. M. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4916-2057 and Williams, C. M. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4452-671X (2010) Using a runway paradigm to assess the relative strength of rats' motivations for enrichment objects. Behavior Research Methods, 42 (2). pp. 517-524. ISSN 1554-351X doi: 10.3758/BRM.42.2.517

Abstract/Summary

Laboratory animals should be provided with enrichment objects in their cages; however, it is first necessary to test whether the proposed enrichment objects provide benefits that increase the animals’ welfare. The two main paradigms currently used to assess proposed enrichment objects are the choice test, which is limited to determining relative frequency of choice, and consumer demand studies, which can indicate the strength of a preference but are complex to design. Here, we propose a third methodology: a runway paradigm, which can be used to assess the strength of an animal’s motivation for enrichment objects, is simpler to use than consumer demand studies, and is faster to complete than typical choice tests. Time spent with objects in a standard choice test was used to rank several enrichment objects in order to compare with the ranking found in our runway paradigm. The rats ran significantly more times, ran faster, and interacted longer with objects with which they had previously spent the most time. It was concluded that this simple methodology is suitable for measuring rats’ motivation to reach enrichment objects. This can be used to assess the preference for different types of enrichment objects or to measure reward system processes.

Item Type	Article
URI	https://reading-clone.eprints-hosting.org/id/eprint/7670
Identification Number/DOI	10.3758/BRM.42.2.517
Refereed	Yes
Divisions	Life Sciences > School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences > Psychopathology and Affective Neuroscience Life Sciences > School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences > Department of Psychology
Publisher	Psychonomic Society
Publisher Statement	This manuscript was accepted for publication in Behavior Research Methods on November 17, 2009. The copyright is held by Psychonomic Society Publications. This document may not exactly correspond to the final published version. Psychonomic Society Publications disclaims any responsibility or liability for errors in this manuscript.
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