Bjornson, Kirsten L EXOGENOUS CORTICOSTERONE ADMINISTRATION VS. AN ENVIRONMENTAL STRESSOR: APPROACH BEHAVIORS IN PASSER DOMESTICUS. 2014. Radford University, Thesis. Radford University Scholars' Repository.
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Abstract
Stress responses to an immediate threat are thought to be beneficial for survival. The stress hormone, corticosterone (CORT), mediates bodily functions to better cope with a stressor. However, the behavioral effects of CORT are somewhat poorly understood. Previous studies have observed body condition and behavioral effects with repeated acute CORT administration over a long period of time. Moreover, Cooper and Davis (submitted) found that house sparrows (Passer domesticus) exhibited neophobic behaviors when exposed to the color red. In this thesis project, I plan to present house sparrows with a red stimulus directly after a single acute treatment of CORT with the expectation that CORT-treated birds will display more hesitant and anxious behaviors than those without CORT treatment. Additionally, few studies have compared whether exogenous CORT administration alone produces the same behavioral responses as a physical stressor. To investigate this, I will compare the CORT-treated and CORT-absent birds to those birds in a “capture and restraint” group. I expect there to be no behavioral differences between CORT-treated and “bagged” birds, while there will be behavioral differences between CORT-absent birds and “bagged” birds. The results from this study will further our knowledge of how corticosterone influences the stress response.
| Item Type: | Thesis |
|---|---|
| Subjects: | B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology |
| Divisions: | Radford University > College of Humanities and Behavioral Sciences > Department of Psychology |
| Date Deposited: | 04 Dec 2014 14:55 |
| Last Modified: | 20 Apr 2023 12:52 |
| URI: | http://wagner.radford.edu/id/eprint/156 |
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