Antonova et al's study Flashcards
(10 cards)
What was the aim of the study?
To see if scopolamine affected hippocampal activity in the creation of spatial memory.
What experimental method was used?
Lab experiment
What type of experimental design was it?
Repeated measures design because they redid the test but with the opposite treatment.
How many participants were in the experiment?
20 male adults, with the mean age of 28
How were the participants allocated into the conditions?
Random allocation
What was the IV and the DV?
IV: scopolamine or placebo
DV: measured hippocampal activity using fMRI (creating spatial memories)
What type of procedure was it?
Blind double procedure (neither the participant or the researcher knew the aim of the study or what they were being injected with).
What was the procedure?
The participants were randomly allocated into the 2 conditions. They were either injected with Scopolamine or a placebo 70-90 minutes before taking part in the task. The participants were put into an fMRI where they were scanned while playing the “Arena task” which is a virtual reality game. The participants were first trained in the game to ensure they understood how to use the controls and the rules of the game. Then they took part in the experiment. The researchers were observing how well the participants were able to create spatial memories. The goal of the game was to navigate the “arena” and find a pole. Once they knew where the pole was located, the screen would go blank for 30 seconds. During this time, the participants were asked to** actively rehearse how to get to the pole in the arena**. When the screen came on again, the participants was now in a new starting point and would have to use their spatial memory to find the location of the pole. Their brain activity was measured for 6 trials. After 3-4 weeks, the participants returned to do the experiment again but with the opposite treatment to the original study.
What were the results/findings of the study?
The researchers found that when participants were injected with scopolamine, they showed a significant reduction in the activation of the hippocampus compared to when they received the placebo.
What was the conclusion of the study?
Acetylcholine plays a key role in the encoding of special memories in humans
