ANIMAL-MODELS IN COGNITIVE-BEHAVIORAL PHARMACOLOGY - AN OVERVIEW

Most studies in cognitive behavioural pharmacology have used rodents a s subjects and simple learning tasks. This approach is regarded as acc eptable because the cognitive abilities of rats may not differ from th ose of non-human primates and the modelling in animals of those advanc ed cognitive abilities possessed by humans may be of limited utility. A strength of many existing models lies in their construct validity. H owever, the face, concurrent and predictive validities of many animal models are low. In part, this is due to the need to take account of sp ecies specific characteristics in experimental design. Thus, inter-spe cies differences in learning may be explained not by differences in co gnitive ability but by differences in species specific morphological, physiological and behavioural characteristics. Features of the 'ideal' animal model of human cognitive function are listed and potential str ategies for future research in cognitive behavioural pharmacology asse ssed.