Just like humans, rats are able to estimate a temporal error in their actions.

Rodents monitor their error in self-generated duration on a single trial basis Human beings possess the capacity for introspection, to judge their own actions even in the absence of feedback from the outside, which allows them to implement corrective adjustments for the next time. To determine if the rodent is able to judge the temporal precision of its own action, in a collaborative study with Tadeusz Kononowicz (Polish Academy of Sciences) and Virginie van Wassenhove (NeuroSpin), we developed a behavioral task during which the rat learned to produce a duration of at least 3.2 seconds by pressing a lever.
A reward was distributed in a cup located on the left or on the right according to the size of the error produced compared to the target duration. In test trials where the animal has a choice between the two cups, the choice of location and the speed with which it rushes to get the reward indicate his knowledge of the size of the error he just produced, as well as the confidence he has in his judgement. The behavior of the animal reflected not only the history of the rewards obtained, but also the analysis that he makes of his performance: on each trial, the rodents evaluated the precision with which they had carried out the requested task and were able to carry out “error monitoring” or error tracking. By demonstrating this ability in rats, this work paves the way for new research on the brain mechanisms underlying the internal representation of time.

Rodents monitor their error in self-generated duration on a single trial basis. Tadeusz Wladyslaw Kononowicz, Virginie van Wassenhove, Valérie Doyère.

Article published in PNASAccess to the manuscript