Conclusions
The procedures and data analysis approach used here provide an objective, automated means of measuring mediating behavior, which might be useful as an animal model of memory rehearsal.
Methods
Lighted nosepoke holes were used to present position cues and record delayed matching or nonmatching responses. Performance of a distractor task was required to prevent simply waiting at the correct choice, but the nosepoke holes were left accessible during the delay.
Results
Each rat trained with the nonmatching task exhibited one of two mediating "strategies" that increased the odds of a correct choice: responding in the to-be-correct hole during the delay or responding in the opposite hole during the delay. Rats trained with the matching task all showed the former strategy. Treatment with scopolamine disrupted performance of the mediating response. Scopolamine and THC both decreased the effectiveness of the mediating response, increasing errors even on trials when the "appropriate" mediating behavior did occur. Conclusions: The procedures and data analysis approach used here provide an objective, automated means of measuring mediating behavior, which might be useful as an animal model of memory rehearsal.