Background 
Behavioral research has made significant contributions to the understanding, treatment, and 
prevention of behavioral disorders. Experimental animals play an essential role in this work. 
The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), together with other institutes of the National 
Institutes of Health (NIH) that have relevant research programs, prepared this handbook. The 
handbook provides a description of and references for commonly used behavioral research 
methods and associated animal welfare considerations in accordance with Federal laws 
governing animal research. It is intended to assist Institutional Animal Care and Use 
Committees (LACUCs) in their reviews of protocols involving animal behavior and animal 
cognition, particularly when expertise is not available on the committee, and to assist 
investigators in planning their experiments. 
The development of this handbook took place in three stages. Drs. Adrian Morrison and 
Richard Nakamura, in consultation with Drs. Hugh Evans and Steven Maier, representing the 
Committee on Animal Research and Ethics of the American Psychological Association, 
determined the general subject areas that this handbook would include. Research scientists 
with specific expertise in each area were selected to work with a section chairperson in 
creating a preliminary document that was presented at a 1-1/2 -day conference. Present at the 
conference were participating researchers, laboratory animal veterinarians, and 
representatives from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Office of 
Laboratory Animal Welfare (OLAW), and the Association for Assessment and Accreditation of 
Laboratory Animal Care, International (AAALAC). Each chairperson was responsible for 
preparation of a document summarizing the salient points from each topic. The editors then 
incorporated revisions as provided by the reviewers. They also contributed substantially to the 
original writing in most of the chapters. 
These conference documents served as the resource from which this volume was assembled 
and edited by Adrian Morrison, Nancy Ator, Hugh Evans, and Richard Nakamura with the 
editorial assistance of Deborah Faryna, employing the suggestions received from a wide range 
of commentators, including research scientists, laboratory animal veterinarians, and 
interested lay people. The document cannot provide a thorough review of the literature; it is 
meant to guide the researcher and IACUC to appropriate considerations and entry points in the 
literature. A few key references for various parts of this work are provided in the text. 
References are provided at the end of each chapter. In addition to articles specifically 
mentioned in the text, there are additional references for further exploration of the 
issues. Also, the reader should be assured that all statements, whether documented 
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