Recording Neuronal Data During Classical Conditioning Experiments

Abstract

Recording and describing the activity of neurons during behavior is a major tool for trying to understand the relation between brain and behavior. Indeed, one of the major reasons that classical conditioning became a very popular behavioral paradigm for studying the neural correlates of learning and memory was that neural recording, used in conjunction with classical conditioning, was relatively simple. As we pointed out in the beginning of this book, during classical conditioning experiments the experimenter has full control of when stimuli are delivered and knows when to expect conditioned and unconditioned behaviors to occur. Further, in some classical conditioning procedures, such as eyeblink conditioning, the length of the trial is relatively short—typically on the order of 500 to 1500 msec.