scholarly journals Individual differences in behavioral flexibility in a probabilistic reversal learning task: An fMRI study.

2014 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 203-218 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anja Waegeman ◽  
Carolyn H. Declerck ◽  
Christophe Boone ◽  
Ruth Seurinck ◽  
Paul M. Parizel
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Reversal Learning ◽  
Behavioral Flexibility ◽  
Learning Task ◽  
Fmri Study ◽  
Probabilistic Reversal Learning

Compulsivity and probabilistic reversal learning in OCD and cocaine addiction

2015 ◽  
Vol 30 (S2) ◽  
pp. S110-S111 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Smith ◽  
N. Benzina ◽  
F. Vorspan ◽  
L. Mallet ◽  
K. N’Diaye
Keyword(s):  
Reversal Learning ◽  
A Priori ◽  
Behavioral Flexibility ◽  
Learning Task ◽  
Repetitive Behaviors ◽  
Cocaine Addiction ◽  
Obsessive Compulsive ◽  
Compulsive Disorder ◽  
Cocaine Users ◽  
Probabilistic Reversal Learning

Compulsive behavior is a core symptom of both obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and cocaine addiction (CA). Across both pathologies, one can identify a priori goal-directed actions (purportedly anxiolytic checking or washing in OCD and pleasure-seeking drug use in addiction) that turn into rigid, ritualized and repetitive behaviors over which the patient loose control. One possible psychopathological mechanism underlying compulsivity is behavioral inflexibility, namely a deficit in the aptitude to dynamically adapt to novel contexts and changing reward rules. The probabilistic reversal learning paradigm allows to objectively assess behavioral flexibility by challenging participants with a task where they have to learn through trials-and-errors which of two stimuli is the most-often rewarded one, while adjusting to sudden inconspicuous contingency reversals. We therefore hypothesized that both OCD and CA would be associated with impaired cognitive flexibility, as measured through perseverative response rate following contingency reversals in this task. Interestingly, impulsivity may also be assessed within this task via the tendency of participants to switch from one stimulus to the other following probabilistic errors. To investigate cognitive inflexibility in relation to CA and OCD respectively, we first compared the performance in a probabilistic reversal learning task of cocaine users, ex cocaine users (abstinent for 2 months or more), and controls, as well as that of participants from the general population whose obsessive-compulsive traits were assessed using the OCI-R, a well-validated self-questionnaire. Our task yielded results similar to those found in the literature: cocaine addicts changed their responses more often, and learned less effectively. Ex-cocaine addicts performed better than addicts but worse than controls, suggesting that addicts’ poor results may be in part explained by reversible cognitive consequences of addiction. Addicts with less cognitive impairments may also be less likely to relapse. Regarding the relationship of flexibility to subclinical OCD traits, we found no link between OCI-R score and perseveration, or between impulsiveness and excessive switching.

Probabilistic Reversal Learning Task

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna-Maria D'Cruz ◽  
Michael E. Ragozzino ◽  
Matthew W. Mosconi ◽  
Sunil Shrestha ◽  
Edwin H. Cook ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Reversal Learning ◽  
Learning Task ◽  
Probabilistic Reversal Learning

scholarly journals Inability to activate Rac1-dependent forgetting contributes to behavioral inflexibility in mutants of multiple autism-risk genes

2016 ◽  
Vol 113 (27) ◽  
pp. 7644-7649 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tao Dong ◽  
Jing He ◽  
Shiqing Wang ◽  
Lianzhang Wang ◽  
Yuqi Cheng ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Reversal Learning ◽  
Behavioral Flexibility ◽  
Learning Task ◽  
Repetitive Behaviors ◽  
Loss Of Function ◽  
Risk Genes ◽  
Risk Gene ◽  
Alternative Approach ◽  
Similar Phenotype ◽  
Autistic Symptoms

The etiology of autism is so complicated because it involves the effects of variants of several hundred risk genes along with the contribution of environmental factors. Therefore, it has been challenging to identify the causal paths that lead to the core autistic symptoms such as social deficit, repetitive behaviors, and behavioral inflexibility. As an alternative approach, extensive efforts have been devoted to identifying the convergence of the targets and functions of the autism-risk genes to facilitate mapping out causal paths. In this study, we used a reversal-learning task to measure behavioral flexibility in Drosophila and determined the effects of loss-of-function mutations in multiple autism-risk gene homologs in flies. Mutations of five autism-risk genes with diversified molecular functions all led to a similar phenotype of behavioral inflexibility indicated by impaired reversal-learning. These reversal-learning defects resulted from the inability to forget or rather, specifically, to activate Rac1 (Ras-related C3 botulinum toxin substrate 1)-dependent forgetting. Thus, behavior-evoked activation of Rac1-dependent forgetting has a converging function for autism-risk genes.

scholarly journals Brief Report: Feasibility of the Probabilistic Reversal Learning Task as an Outcome Measure in an Intervention Trial for Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lauren M. Schmitt ◽  
John A. Sweeney ◽  
Craig A. Erickson ◽  
Rebecca Shaffer
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Cognitive Flexibility ◽  
Reversal Learning ◽  
Behavioral Interventions ◽  
Outcome Measure ◽  
Outcome Measurement ◽  
Learning Task ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Probabilistic Reversal Learning

AbstractCognitive flexibility deficits are a hallmark feature of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), but few evidence-based behavioral interventions have successfully addressed this treatment target. Outcome measurement selection may help account for previous findings. The probabilistic reversal learning task (PRL) is a measure of cognitive flexibility previously validated for use in ASD, but its use as an outcome measure has not yet been assessed. The current study examined the feasibility, reproducibility, and sensitivity of PRL in a within-subjects trial of Regulating Together, a group-based intervention targeting emotion regulation. We demonstrated the PRL is highly feasible, showed test–retest reproducibility, and is sensitive to detect change following the intervention. Our findings demonstrate the PRL task may be a useful outcome measure of cognitive flexibility in future intervention trials in ASD.

scholarly journals Investigation of reward learning and feedback sensitivity in non-clinical participants with a history of early life stress

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (12) ◽  
pp. e0260444
Author(s):  
Matthew Paul Wilkinson ◽  
Chloe Louise Slaney ◽  
Jack Robert Mellor ◽  
Emma Susan Jane Robinson
Keyword(s):  
Reversal Learning ◽  
Life Stress ◽  
Early Life ◽  
Early Life Stress ◽  
Learning Task ◽  
Reward Learning ◽  
Feedback Sensitivity ◽  
History Of ◽  
A Current ◽  
Probabilistic Reversal Learning

Early life stress (ELS) is an important risk factor for the development of depression. Impairments in reward learning and feedback sensitivity are suggested to be an intermediate phenotype in depression aetiology therefore we hypothesised that healthy adults with a history of ELS would exhibit reward processing deficits independent of any current depressive symptoms. We recruited 64 adults with high levels of ELS and no diagnosis of a current mental health disorder and 65 controls. Participants completed the probabilistic reversal learning task and probabilistic reward task followed by depression, anhedonia, social status, and stress scales. Participants with high levels of ELS showed decreased positive feedback sensitivity in the probabilistic reversal learning task compared to controls. High ELS participants also trended towards possessing a decreased model-free learning rate. This was coupled with a decreased learning ability in the acquisition phase of block 1 following the practice session. Neither group showed a reward induced response bias in the probabilistic reward task however high ELS participants exhibited decreased stimuli discrimination. Overall, these data suggest that healthy participants without a current mental health diagnosis but with high levels of ELS show deficits in positive feedback sensitivity and reward learning in the probabilistic reversal learning task that are distinct from depressed patients. These deficits may be relevant to increased depression vulnerability.

scholarly journals Greater mindful eating practice is associated with better reversal learning

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lieneke Katharina Janssen ◽  
Iris Duif ◽  
Ilke van Loon ◽  
Jeanne de Vries ◽  
Anne Speckens ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Reversal Learning ◽  
Eating Habits ◽  
Behavioral Flexibility ◽  
Learning Task ◽  
Mindfulness Practice ◽  
Clinical Population ◽  
Group Differences ◽  
Mindful Eating ◽  
Outcome Valence ◽  
Control Intervention

Mindfulness-based interventions are thought to reduce compulsive behavior such as overeating by promoting behavioral flexibility. Here the main aim was to provide support for mindfulness-mediated improvements in reversal learning, a direct measure of behavioral flexibility. We investigated whether an 8-week mindful eating intervention improved outcome-based reversal learning relative to an educational cooking (i.e., active control) intervention in a non-clinical population. Sixty-five healthy participants with a wide BMI range (19–35 kg/m2), who were motivated to change their eating habits, performed a deterministic reversal learning task that enabled the investigation of reward- and punishment-based reversal learning at baseline and following the intervention. No group differences in reversal learning were observed. However, time invested in the mindful eating, but not the educational cooking intervention correlated positively with changes in reversal learning, in a manner independent of outcome valence. These findings suggest that greater amount of mindfulness practice can lead to increased behavioral flexibility, which, in turn, might help overcome compulsive eating in clinical populations.

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