Measuring Impulsive Choice Behaviour in Mice

Impulsive behaviour is a fundamental component of numerous psychiatric illnesses including mood disorders. In order to measure “impulsivity” and understand the complex neurological underpinnings of this behavioural construct, it is beneficial to employ the use of mouse models. Neuropsychological tasks used to measure impulsivity in humans have been successfully translated into behavioural tests to characterise impulsivity in mice. This has lead to the development of the delayed reinforcement paradigm, which specifically measures “impulsive choice”. This, combined with genetic and pharmacological manipulations, allows insight into possible biological markers associated with impulsive choice. This chapter provides a description of the equipment and procedures required to measure impulsive choice in a delayed reinforcement paradigm, as well as examples of results and troubleshooting advice to optimise the behavioural data.