Journal article
Pigeons Deploy Selective Attention to Efficiently Learn a Stagewise Multidimensional Visual Discrimination Task
Journal of experimental psychology. Animal learning and cognition, Vol.44(2), pp.162-167
04/2018
DOI: 10.1037/xan0000168
PMID: 29683695
Abstract
We trained 8 pigeons (Columba livia) on a stagewise go/no-go visual discrimination task of increasing complexity, to document the dynamics of selective attention. We constructed negative compound stimuli (S-s) on the basis of their overall similarity to a positive compound stimulus (S+) along 4 binary-valued dimensions: shape (circle/square), size (large/small), line orientation (horizontal/vertical), and brightness (dark/light). Starting with 1 S+ and 1 S- that differed in all 4 dimensional values, in 3 later steps, we progressively added S-s sharing 1, 2, and finally 3 dimensional values with the S+. Although in the first step the pigeons could have attended to any of the 4 dimensions (separately or together) to solve the discrimination, all of the pigeons attended to only 1 dimension. Furthermore, the pigeons attended to just 1 additional dimension in each of the 3 succeeding steps. Notably, all pigeons discriminated the 4 dimensions in the same order: first brightness, then line orientation, then size, and finally shape. This ordering corresponds with the overall discriminability of the dimensional values for these dimensions observed in prior studies. Pigeons clearly optimized their attentional behavior, selectively and efficiently processing only 1 additional dimension in each stage of discrimination learning.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Pigeons Deploy Selective Attention to Efficiently Learn a Stagewise Multidimensional Visual Discrimination Task
- Creators
- Olga V Vyazovska - Department of General Practice-Family Medicine, School of Medicine, V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National UniversityVictor M Navarro - Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, The University of IowaEdward A Wasserman - Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, The University of Iowa
- Contributors
- Ralph R Miller (Editor)
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Journal of experimental psychology. Animal learning and cognition, Vol.44(2), pp.162-167
- Publisher
- American Psychological Association
- DOI
- 10.1037/xan0000168
- PMID
- 29683695
- ISSN
- 2329-8456
- eISSN
- 2329-8464
- Alternative title
- BRIEF REPORT
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 04/2018
- Academic Unit
- Psychological and Brain Sciences; Iowa Neuroscience Institute
- Record Identifier
- 9984070613102771
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