PSYO/NESC 3161 Measuring Behaviour Class 3: Lab 1: Measurement of mouse behaviour in the home cage. Kurt Stover September 13 th 2011 Report due next lab class, September 20th
Class Schedule Today Lab 1: Home Cage Observations September 20 th : Lab 1 report due Lab 2a: Locomotor & anxiety-related behavior in the elevated + maze (Due 13 th October) September 27 th : Lab 2b. Locomotor & anxiety-related behavior in the elevated + maze October 4 th : Lab 2c. Locomotor and anxiety-related behavior in the elevated + maze.
Why measure behaviour in the home cage? To identify what behaviours the animal displays naturally. Abnormal home cage behaviour may indicate if an animal is unhealthy. Experimental manipulations (genetic, lesions, drugs) may influence the behaviour within the home cage.
Purpose of Lab 1 In this lab students will gain experience observing and measuring behaviour. Students will provide a qualitative record of the behaviour of a mouse from a 1-min video. Then different behaviours in the qualitative description will be quantified. Definitions and quantitative measurements of behavioural units
Experiment Design Female 6m CD-1 mouse Video recorded during light portion of light/dark cycle Approximately 10am Clear plastic home cage: 18.75 x 28 x 12.5 cm Free access to food and water Wood chip bedding Wire top PVC tube (4cm diameter x 7cm length) for enrichment Camera facing side of cage White light for illumination
Lab 1 Report The observations we make today will be used for your lab report Take detailed notes
Qualitative Description What is a qualitative description of behaviour? How are these descriptions made? What are they used for? We will watch a 1-minute video of a mouse in its home cage and create a qualitative description its behaviour Video 1
Qualitative Description Compile a list of behavioural units observed Choose 5 behaviours from that list Quantify your qualitative observations Quantitative observations
Quantitative Description Quantify aspects of behaviour Number of times each behaviour unit occurs (Frequency) Length of each behaviour unit (Duration) We will record the number of times the behaviour unit occurs Video 2
Quantitative Description Compare our results Were there discrepancies? Why or why not?
Interobserver Reliability Important in behavioural research Rarely reported Various statistical methods for assesment How can reliability be improved?
Quantitative Description Need precise definitions before we can quantify How will we define our 5 behavioural units? Continuous quantitative observations Score new video with our 5 well defined behavioural units Video 2
Quantitative Descriptions Yet again, compare results Are there still discrepancies? Why? Instantaneous time sampling 5,10,20 second intervals Video 2
Quantitative Descriptions Advantages/Disadvantages of different methods of time sampling?
Laboratory 1: Report 1. Title page 2. Introduction 3. Materials and Methods 4. Results 5. Discussion 6. Figures/Tables Due at beginning of next lab class (September 20th)
Lab Report Style Write as it if were a real experiment Reports must be completed using a word processor. Black ink only Double-space the text. Worth 10% of lab grade. 5% of total grade Late assignments -5% per day Extensions only with signed doctors note
Lab Report Style 2 Must submit electronic and hard copy Email to Kurt.Stover@Dal.ca Hard copy due at start of next class Electronic copy required to receive a grade Email subject : 3161 Lab 1 Filename: Your_Name_Lab1
Include the following: Title Page i) Title of the lab report ii) Your name iii) Student Number iv) Date
Introduction Short description of the purpose of the experiment Should only be 1-2 paragraphs 1 page maximum
Materials and Methods Subjects: Include the following Strain of mouse used Sex of mouse Age of mouse Light-cycle in colony room Description of home cage Dimensions Bedding Food/Water available? Enrichment? State that experiment followed guidelines from the Dalhousie University Committee on Animal Care
Materials and Methods Procedure Describe how was the experiment completed: How were the behavioural unit scored by the observer? How long was the video? Where was the camera positioned relative to the cage? In what room was the video recorded?
Results The results section will have two subsections : 1) Qualitative observation: Detailed qualitative description of behavioural units. 2) Quantitative observation: Define the behavioural units that were quantified. Summarize the frequency that each behavioural unit occurred using tables or figures. Do this for all 4 types of quantitative observations we made (continuous + 3 sampling intervals)
Discussion Maximum 1.5 page in length Briefly describe the pattern of results. What behaviours occurred more than others? Were there differences in the frequency that behaviours were scored with continuous and time sampling procedures and why? Were there differences in the frequency that behaviours were scored with time sampling using different time intervals and why? Discuss the accuracy of each method of quantifying behaviour
Marking Breakdown