Date of Defense
6-26-1997
Department
Psychology
First Advisor
Dr. Lisa Baker
Second Advisor
Dr. Christine Byrd
Third Advisor
Dr. Kjell Svensson
Abstract
It is well known that individuals differ in their sensitivity to drugs of abuse. Why some individuals become addicted to psychostimulant drugs while others do not is a question that is of great importance if society is to deal effectively with the problem of drug abuse. Research has shown that individuals' responses to drugs are under some genetic control (Crabbe and Belknap, 1992). However, there is also considerable evidence that an organism's environment greatly influences responses to psychostimulant drugs (Fowler, Johnson, Kallman, Liou, Wilson and Hikal, 1993; Bolye, Gill, Smith and Amit, 1991; Schenk, Hunt, Malovechko, Robertson, Klukowski and Amit, 1986; Bowling and Bardo, 1993). To further understand how environmental rearing conditions affect an organism's sensitivity to psychostimulant drugs, rats were reared in two drastically different environmental conditions and were trained to discriminate between cocaine (10.0 mg/kg) and vehicle injections. Substitution and challenge tests were conducted to assess the effects of rearing conditions on sensitivity to the stimulus properties of cocaine.
Recommended Citation
Duke, Dawn, "Cocaine Discrimination in Rats Reared in Enriched and Isolate Conditions" (1997). Honors Theses. 1033.
https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/honors_theses/1033
Access Setting
Honors Thesis-Campus Only