Place conditioning reveals the rewarding aspect of social interaction in juvenile rats
Abstract
Rewards, as diverse as food, sweetened solutions, copulation, electrical brain stimulation, and drugs abused by humans, have been shown to condition place preferences in rats. Juvenile rats will readily learn to traverse a T-maze for the opportunity to interact with another similar-aged rat. This suggests that play behavior is rewarding. Experiment 1 examined whether play (as quantified by rough-and-tumble pinning) would act as a sufficient reward to condition a place preference (CPP). Experiment 2 examined whether pairings with a nonplaying partner would decrease the time spent in the preferred side and thus suggest a conditioned place aversion (CPA). In Experiment 1, dominant juvenile rats were given free access to a CPP apparatus and a side preference for one of the two physically distinct sides was determined. Dominant rats were then conditioned twice daily over four days in the CPP apparatus. They spent their first session confined in their preferred side with a scopolamine-treated partner (that rendered the partner unable to respond to play solicitations) and during the second session, dominant rats were confined to their less preferred side with a submissive play partner. The number of dorsal contacts, as well as frequency and duration of pinning, were recorded. Following conditioning, side preference was redetermined. A similar procedure was used in Experiment 2 except that the subjects underwent conditioning on their less-preferred side without a play partner. Result…
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Social play is a highly rewarding behavior in non-human primates and rats.
“Furthermore, experiments in non-human primates and rats have demonstrated that social play is a highly rewarding behavior (Achterberg et al, 2016;Calcagnetti and Schechter, 1992;Ikemoto and Panksepp, 1992;Normansell and Panksepp, 1990;Trezza et al, 2009).”
From Vasopressin regulates social play behavior in sex-specific ways through glutamate modulation in the lateral septum (2025) · cites this paper as Calcagnetti and Schechter, 1992
The rewarding properties of social play behaviour in rats have been well-documented in place conditioning and operant conditioning setups.
“The rewarding properties of social play behaviour in rats have been well-documented in place conditioning and operant conditioning setups (Calcagnetti and Schechter 1992; Trezza et al. 2011; Achterberg et al. 2016a,b, 2019).”
From Neurexin1α knockout in rats causes aberrant social behaviour: relevance for autism and schizophrenia (2025) · cites this paper as Calcagnetti and Schechter 1992
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- Authors
- Calcagnetti, D. J., & Schechter, M. D.
- Affiliations
- Northeast Ohio Medical University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Calcagnetti, Daniel J.
- ORCID
- Schechter, Martin D.
- Venue
- Physiology & Behavior
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 1992-04
- Volume
- 51
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 667-672
- ISSN
- 0031-9384 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2079610637
- Cited by
- 284
- References
- 3
- Citations by year
- 2026: 8 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 10 · 2023: 12 · 2022: 13 · 2021: 10 · 2020: 16 · 2019: 10 · 2018: 12 · 2017: 12 · 2016: 12 · 2015: 12 · 2014: 10 · 2013: 18 · 2012: 11
- FWCI
- 1.63
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Physiology & Behavior (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- U.S. Public Health Service
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Memory and Neural Mechanisms
- Keywords
- place conditioning, social reward, young rats, play behavior, rough-and-tumble play, pinning, conditioned place preference, conditioned place aversion, dominance, scopolamine, social interaction, reinforcement theory, construct validity
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Conditioning, Classical, Female, Male, Motivation, Motor Activity, Play and Playthings, Rats, Inbred Strains, Scopolamine, Social Behavior, Social Dominance, Social Environment, Social Isolation, Rats
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