Namely, we should try to repeat behaviours that lead to positive outcomes and avoid those that lead to negative outcomes. However, this process can go awry, particularly in conditions like depression and can have devastating social and economic consequences.
Changes in the way the neurotransmitter dopamine affect neuronal behaviour, particularly in region of the brain called the ventral striatum, is one of the chief culprits for this behaviour. Accordingly, modifying dopamine levels in this region, with a dopamine-altering drug like methylphenidate, could be used as a potential treatment in depression.
However, before the effects of methylphenidate are examined in patients, work in the PSLAB at BRIC is trying to uncover whether social learning can be modified by methylphenidate in non-depressed populations.
Using acute exposure to C02 as a model of anxiety
It may surprise you, given how many terrible things there on in the world, that scientists have generally not had access to quantifiable, safe, ethical ways of temporarily inducing anxiety into human subjects. However, this is changing. The PSLAB at BRIC is making use of a well-validated way of modelling anxiety. By administering a low level of C02 it is possible to induce anxiety-like symptoms of increased heart rate and blood pressure. Current projects using this method are looking at:
- Its effects on social learning.
- Its effects on vascular response measured using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (FNIRS) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (FMRI).
- Pharmacological manipulations that negate the anxiety-induced symptoms.