Learning from others to cope with biting flies: Social learning of fear-induced conditioned analgesia and active avoidance

Citation
M. Kavaliers et al., Learning from others to cope with biting flies: Social learning of fear-induced conditioned analgesia and active avoidance, BEHAV NEURO, 115(3), 2001, pp. 661-674
Citations number
65
Categorie Soggetti
Neurosciences & Behavoir
Journal title
BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE
ISSN journal
07357044 → ACNP
Volume
115
Issue
3
Year of publication
2001
Pages
661 - 674
Database
ISI
SICI code
0735-7044(200106)115:3<661:LFOTCW>2.0.ZU;2-L
Abstract
Although fear conditioning has received extensive attention, little is know n about the roles of social learning whereby an individual may learn and ac quire the fear responses of another. The authors examined individually and socially mediated acquisition of fear and analgesia to the natural aversive stimulus of biting flies. Exposure to biting flies elicited in individual naive mice analgesia and active self-burying to avoid the flies. When expos ed 24 hr later to flies whose biting parts were removed, but not to nonbiti ng house flies, these mice displayed conditioned analgesia and self-burying . This "one-trial" conditioned analgesia and avoidance was also acquired th rough social learning without direct individual experience with biting flie s. Naive "observer" mice that witnessed other "demonstrator" mice being att acked by biting flies exhibited analgesia and self-burying 24 hr later to a ltered flies.