Temporal Discrimination Learning

描述(由申请人提供)：该项目的长期目标是确定一种计时理论，该理论可以定量地解释时间知觉和计时绩效研究中使用的许多程序中的许多行为衡量标准。这些包括涉及经典条件作用、操作性条件作用和选择的过程。将记录个体反应(杠杆按压、头部进入食品杯和舔水管)的时间，并将作为确定反应回合的特征、总体反应率以及事件(刺激、反应和增强剂)与局部反应率之间关系的基础。大鼠将接受类似的计时程序的训练，这些程序在刺激和应急反应的数量、食物增强剂的分布和平均增强率方面有所不同。假设比赛结构相对稳定，总体反应速度在很大程度上受整体增援速度的控制，反应模式在很大程度上受预期增援时间的控制。一种可能对结果进行定量解释的计时分组理论正在开发中。它将根据其简单性、灵活性和通用性以及与行为数据的匹配性进行评估。原始数据将在网上提供，以便其他人可以核实、质疑和/或扩展已发表的结果，并比较对数据的不同解释。时间知觉的各种扭曲是不同精神障碍和药物性障碍的特征。对计时绩效背后的机制的理解可能有助于理解这些影响。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The long-term objective of the project is to identify a theory of timing that accounts quantitatively for many measures of behavior in many procedures used in the study of time perception and timed performance. These include procedures that involve classical conditioning, operant conditioning, and choice. The times of individual responses (lever pressing, head entry into the food cup, and licks on a water tube) will be recorded, and will be the basis for determination of the characteristics of bouts of responses, overall response rates, and the relationship between events (stimuli, responses, and reinforcers) and the local response rate. Rats will be trained in comparable timing procedures that differ in the number of stimuli and response contingencies, the distribution of food reinforcers, and the average rate of reinforcement. The hypothesis is that the bout structure is relatively stable, the overall response rate is largely controlled by the overall rate of reinforcement, and the pattern of responding is largely controlled by the expected time to reinforcement. A packet theory of timing is being developed that may account quantitatively for the results. It will be evaluated with respect to its simplicity, flexibility, and generality, as well as its fit to the behavioral data. The original data will be made available on the web so that others may verify, challenge, and/or extend published results and to compare alternative explanations of the data. Various distortions of time perception are characteristic of different psychiatric disorders and drug induced disorders. An understanding of the mechanisms underlying timed performance may contribute to an understanding of these effects.