Degree
Master of Science
Program
Psychology
Supervisor
Roberts, William A.
2nd Supervisor
Sherry, David F.
Co-Supervisor
Abstract
Episodic memory is a unique, personal memory that contains what happened, where it happened, and when it happened. Although episodic-like memory (ELM) in non-human animals has been shown using what-where-when (WWW) memory paradigms, it has not previously been shown in dogs. Dogs are an excellent candidate for developing translational models of neurodegenerative disorders related to episodic memory, including Alzheimer’s disease. Dogs were tested on experiments that involved spatially and temporally unique odour sequences. Dogs were tested to see if they remembered the odours, their locations, and their time of presentation by choosing the earlier-exposed odour at the test. Findings suggest that dogs can encode ELM, can flexibly use WWW memory on unpredictable tests, and can solve a similar what-where task without odours. My study reveals the usefulness of utilizing olfactory cues to study ELM, and its potential usefulness in examining other aspects of cognition in dogs.
Recommended Citation
Lo, Ka Ho, "Episodic-like Memory in Dogs: Solving What-Where-When Tasks" (2018). Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository. 5554.
https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/etd/5554