Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Reconceptualized Associative Learning.

Perspectives on behavior science·2025

Same author

Robert A. Rescorla (1940-2020).

The American psychologist·2021

Same author

The physical basis of memory.

Cognition·2020

Same author

Getting Numbers into Brains.

Nature human behaviour·2020

Same author

Number and time in acquisition, extinction and recovery.

Journal of the experimental analysis of behavior·2019

Same author

Contingency, contiguity, and causality in conditioning: Applying information theory and Weber's Law to the assignment of credit problem.

Psychological review·2019

Same journal

Chemotactic self-organization captures the dynamics of mammalian hair follicle patterning.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2026

Same journal

Tomographic imaging of superconducting order using particle-hole interference.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2026

Same journal

Inhibitory potential of autologous neutralizing antibodies sets quantitative limits on the rebound-competent HIV-1 reservoir.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2026

Same journal

Inferring epidemiological parameters under an infectious phylogeography model with visitor dynamics.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2026

Same journal

Analytical modeling for suction cup designs for skin-interfaced wearable devices.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2026

Same journal

Improving cell-free metabolism through direct integration of artificial respiratory chains.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2026

See all related articles

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 22, 2026

Automated, Quantitative Cognitive/Behavioral Screening of Mice: For Genetics, Pharmacology, Animal Cognition and Undergraduate Instruction

Automated, Quantitative Cognitive/Behavioral Screening of Mice: For Genetics, Pharmacology, Animal Cognition and Undergraduate Instruction

Published on: February 26, 2014

Mice take calculated risks.

Aaron Kheifets¹, C R Gallistel

¹Department of Psychology, Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA. kheifets@eden.rutgers.edu

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America

|May 18, 2012

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Mice quickly adjust behavior to changing probabilities, suggesting they model the world and calculate outcomes. This indicates sophisticated cognitive processes beyond simple associative learning.

More Related Videos

An Appetitive Spatial Working Memory Task for Mice in a Semi-Automated 8-Arm Radial Maze, Reducing Fearful Memory Association in the Maze

An Appetitive Spatial Working Memory Task for Mice in a Semi-Automated 8-Arm Radial Maze, Reducing Fearful Memory Association in the Maze

Published on: July 29, 2025

Measuring the Strength of Mice

Measuring the Strength of Mice

Published on: June 2, 2013

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 22, 2026

Automated, Quantitative Cognitive/Behavioral Screening of Mice: For Genetics, Pharmacology, Animal Cognition and Undergraduate Instruction

Automated, Quantitative Cognitive/Behavioral Screening of Mice: For Genetics, Pharmacology, Animal Cognition and Undergraduate Instruction

Published on: February 26, 2014

An Appetitive Spatial Working Memory Task for Mice in a Semi-Automated 8-Arm Radial Maze, Reducing Fearful Memory Association in the Maze

An Appetitive Spatial Working Memory Task for Mice in a Semi-Automated 8-Arm Radial Maze, Reducing Fearful Memory Association in the Maze

Published on: July 29, 2025

Measuring the Strength of Mice

Measuring the Strength of Mice

Published on: June 2, 2013

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Animal Behavior
Cognitive Science

Background:

Animals navigate complex environments with incomplete information.
Behavior is influenced by either internal world models or reinforcement learning.
Distinguishing between these processes is crucial for understanding decision-making.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate whether animals use probability estimation and calculation for behavior adjustment.
To differentiate between model-based and model-free adaptation in mice.
To explore the cognitive mechanisms underlying navigation and decision-making.

Main Methods:

Mice behavior was observed in response to altered probabilities.
Behavioral adjustments were compared against predictions from differential reinforcement models.
Analysis focused on the speed and abruptness of behavioral changes.

Main Results:

Mice demonstrated faster and more abrupt behavioral shifts than predicted by differential reinforcement alone.
The observed adjustments suggest an active representation and calculation of probabilities.
This occurred even when the behavioral optimization yielded minimal reward.

Conclusions:

Mice employ internal models to represent and compute probabilities for adaptive behavior.
Cognitive processes, including probability calculation, drive behavior beyond simple reinforcement.
This highlights sophisticated decision-making capabilities in animals, even without direct reward optimization.