Individual-specific strategies inform category learning
Abstract Categorization is an essential task for sensory perception. Individuals learn category labels using a variety of strategies to ensure that sensory signals, such as sounds or images, can be assigned to proper categories. Categories are often learned on the basis of extreme examples, and the...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Scientific Reports |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-82219-8 |
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| author | Jared S. Collina Gozde Erdil Mingyi Xia Christopher F. Angeloni Katherine C. Wood Janaki Sheth Konrad P. Kording Yale E. Cohen Maria N. Geffen |
| author_facet | Jared S. Collina Gozde Erdil Mingyi Xia Christopher F. Angeloni Katherine C. Wood Janaki Sheth Konrad P. Kording Yale E. Cohen Maria N. Geffen |
| author_sort | Jared S. Collina |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Categorization is an essential task for sensory perception. Individuals learn category labels using a variety of strategies to ensure that sensory signals, such as sounds or images, can be assigned to proper categories. Categories are often learned on the basis of extreme examples, and the boundary between categories can differ among individuals. The trajectories for learning also differ among individuals, as different individuals rely on different strategies, such as repeating or alternating choices. However, little is understood about the relationship between individual learning trajectories and learned categorization. To study this relationship, we trained mice to categorize auditory stimuli into two categories using a two-alternative forced choice task. Because the mice took several weeks to learn the task, we were able to quantify the time course of individual strategies and how they relate to how mice categorize stimuli around the categorization boundary. Different mice exhibited different trajectories while learning the task. Mice displayed preferences for a specific category, manifested by a choice bias in their responses, but this bias drifted with learning. We found that this drift in choice bias correlated with variability in the category boundary for sounds with ambiguous category membership. Next, we asked how stimulus-independent, individual-specific strategies informed learning. We found that the tendency to repeat choices, which is a form of perseveration, contributed to long-term learning. These results indicate that long-term trends in individual strategies during category learning affect learned category boundaries. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-b67103f4e1be4992aedf93457f17fb35 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj-art-b67103f4e1be4992aedf93457f17fb352025-01-26T12:32:59ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-01-0115111410.1038/s41598-024-82219-8Individual-specific strategies inform category learningJared S. Collina0Gozde Erdil1Mingyi Xia2Christopher F. Angeloni3Katherine C. Wood4Janaki Sheth5Konrad P. Kording6Yale E. Cohen7Maria N. Geffen8Department of Neuroscience, University of PennsylvaniaDepartment of Otorhinolaryngology, University of PennsylvaniaDepartment of Bioengineering, University of PennsylvaniaDepartment of Neurobiology, Northwestern UniversitySchool of Biosciences, University of SheffieldDepartment of Otorhinolaryngology, University of PennsylvaniaDepartment of Neuroscience, University of PennsylvaniaDepartment of Neuroscience, University of PennsylvaniaDepartment of Neuroscience, University of PennsylvaniaAbstract Categorization is an essential task for sensory perception. Individuals learn category labels using a variety of strategies to ensure that sensory signals, such as sounds or images, can be assigned to proper categories. Categories are often learned on the basis of extreme examples, and the boundary between categories can differ among individuals. The trajectories for learning also differ among individuals, as different individuals rely on different strategies, such as repeating or alternating choices. However, little is understood about the relationship between individual learning trajectories and learned categorization. To study this relationship, we trained mice to categorize auditory stimuli into two categories using a two-alternative forced choice task. Because the mice took several weeks to learn the task, we were able to quantify the time course of individual strategies and how they relate to how mice categorize stimuli around the categorization boundary. Different mice exhibited different trajectories while learning the task. Mice displayed preferences for a specific category, manifested by a choice bias in their responses, but this bias drifted with learning. We found that this drift in choice bias correlated with variability in the category boundary for sounds with ambiguous category membership. Next, we asked how stimulus-independent, individual-specific strategies informed learning. We found that the tendency to repeat choices, which is a form of perseveration, contributed to long-term learning. These results indicate that long-term trends in individual strategies during category learning affect learned category boundaries.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-82219-8 |
| spellingShingle | Jared S. Collina Gozde Erdil Mingyi Xia Christopher F. Angeloni Katherine C. Wood Janaki Sheth Konrad P. Kording Yale E. Cohen Maria N. Geffen Individual-specific strategies inform category learning Scientific Reports |
| title | Individual-specific strategies inform category learning |
| title_full | Individual-specific strategies inform category learning |
| title_fullStr | Individual-specific strategies inform category learning |
| title_full_unstemmed | Individual-specific strategies inform category learning |
| title_short | Individual-specific strategies inform category learning |
| title_sort | individual specific strategies inform category learning |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-82219-8 |
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