Staff profile

My research is concerned with the fundamental mechanisms underlying complex non-human animal cognition. In particular I am interested in the psychological processes involved in spatial learning and cognition. I try to answer these questions using approaches derived from experimental psychology, behavioural neuroscience, and ethology. Rodents are ideal subjects for such research. They are extremely adept in their navigational ability, there is a wealth of knowledge behind the behavioural and neural basis of spatial learning in rodents, and the experimenter can ensure they are experimentally naïve at the beginning of experiments. Broadly I am interested in three questions regarding spatial learning: 1. What is the nature of an animal’s representation of space; 2. What are the rules that govern how learning based on spatial information progresses; 3. What are the neural substrates of spatial learning.

In addition, I am interested in translating the results of my research with animals to understanding similar problems with humans. I am also interested more broadly in animal cognition.

Chapter in book

• McGregor, A. (2017). Geometric Module. In J. Vonk, & T. Shackleford (Eds.), Encyclopedia of Animal Cognition and Behavior. Springer Verlag. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-47829-6_895-1
• McGregor, A. (2016). The relation between spatial and nonspatial learning. In R. Murphy, & R. Honey (Eds.), The Wiley Handbook on the Cognitive Neuroscience of Learning (313-347). John Wiley and Sons. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118650813.ch13
• McGregor, A., & Haselgrove, M. (2010). Pigeons and Doves. In R. Hubrecht (Ed.), The UFAW Handbook on the Care and Management of Laboratory Animals (686-697). (8th ed). Blackwell

Journal Article

• Sanderson, D., Austen, J., McGregor, A., & Strickland, J. (in press). Probability and rate of reinforcement in negative prediction error learning. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Animal Learning and Cognition,
• Buckley, M. G., Austen, J. M., & McGregor, A. (2024). The role of distal landmarks and individual differences in acquiring spatial representations that support flexible and automatic wayfinding. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 98, Article 102391. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2024.102391
• Buckley, M., McGregor, A., Ihssen, N., Austen, J., Thurlbeck, S., Smith, S. P., Heinecke, A., & Lew, A. R. (2024). The well‐worn route revisited: Striatal and hippocampal system contributions to familiar route navigation. Hippocampus, 34(7), 310-326. https://doi.org/10.1002/hipo.23607
• McAteer, S. M., McAteer, S. M., McGregor, A., Smith, D. T., & Smith, D. T. (2024). Precision in spatial working memory examined with mouse pointing. Vision Research, 215, Article 108343. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.visres.2023.108343
• McAteer, S. M., Ablott, E., McGregor, A., & Smith, D. T. (2023). Dynamic resource allocation in spatial working memory during full and partial report tasks. Journal of Vision, 23(2), Article 10. https://doi.org/10.1167/jov.23.2.10
• Hines, M., Poulter, S., Douchamps, V., Pibiri, F., McGregor, A., & Lever, C. (2023). Frequency matters: how changes in hippocampal theta frequency can influence temporal coding, anxiety-reduction, and memory. Frontiers in Systems Neuroscience, 16, https://doi.org/10.3389/fnsys.2022.998116
• McAteer, S. M., McGregor, A., & Smith, D. T. (2023). Oculomotor rehearsal in visuospatial working memory. Attention, Perception, and Psychophysics, 85(1), 261-275. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13414-022-02601-4
• Buckley, M. G., Myles, L. A., Easton, A., & McGregor, A. (2022). The spatial layout of doorways and environmental boundaries shape the content of event memories. Cognition, 225, Article 105091. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2022.105091
• Buckley, M. G., Austen, J. M., Myles, L. A., Smith, S., Ihssen, N., Lew, A. R., & McGregor, A. (2021). The effects of spatial stability and cue type on spatial learning: Implications for theories of parallel memory systems. Cognition, 214, Article 104802. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2021.104802
• Chao, C.-M., McGregor, A., & Sanderson, D. J. (2021). Uncertainty and predictiveness modulate attention in human predictive learning. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 150(6), 1177-1202. https://doi.org/10.1037/xge0000991
• McGregor, A. (2020). What Can We Learn About Navigation From Associative Learning?. Comparative cognition & behavior reviews, 15, 163-186. https://doi.org/10.3819/ccbr.2020.150001
• Poulter, S. L., Kosaki, Y., Sanderson, D. J., & McGregor, A. (2020). Spontaneous object-location memory based on environmental geometry is impaired by both hippocampal and dorsolateral striatal lesions. Brain and Neuroscience Advances, 4, https://doi.org/10.1177/2398212820972599
• Lee, S. A., Austen, J. M., Sovrano, V. A., Vallortigara, G., McGregor, A., & Lever, C. (2020). Distinct and combined responses to environmental geometry and features in a working-memory reorientation task in rats and chicks. Scientific Reports, 10(1), Article 7508. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-64366-w
• Poulter, S., Austen, J. M., Kosaki, Y., Dachtler, J., Lever, C., & McGregor, A. (2019). En route to delineating hippocampal roles in spatial learning. Behavioural Brain Research, 369, Article 111936. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbr.2019.111936
• Seel, S., Easton, A., McGregor, A., Buckley, M., & Eacott, M. (2019). Walking through doorways differentially affects recall and familiarity. British Journal of Psychology, 110(1), 173-184. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjop.12343
• Kosaki, Y., Pearce, J., & McGregor, A. (2018). The response strategy and the place strategy in a plus-maze have different sensitivities to devaluation of expected outcome. Hippocampus, 28(7), 484-496. https://doi.org/10.1002/hipo.22847
• Kosaki, Y., Poulter, S., Austen, J., & McGregor, A. (2015). Dorsolateral striatal lesions impair navigation based on landmark-goal vectors but facilitate spatial learning based on a "cognitive map". Learning & Memory, 22(3), 179-191. https://doi.org/10.1101/lm.037077.114
• Austen, J., & McGregor, A. (2014). Revaluation of geometric cues reduces landmark discrimination via within-compound associations. Learning & Behavior, 42(4), 330-336. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13420-014-0150-1
• Lew, A., Usherwood, B., Fragkioudaki, F., Koukoumi, V., Smith, S., Austen, J., & McGregor, A. (2014). Transfer of spatial search between environments in human adults and young children (Homo sapiens): implications for representation of local geometry by spatial systems. Developmental Psychobiology, 56(3), 421-434. https://doi.org/10.1002/dev.21109
• Austen, J., Kosaki, Y., & McGregor, A. (2013). Within-compound associations explain potentiation and failure to overshadow learning based on geometry by discrete landmarks. Journal of experimental psychology. Animal behavior processes, 39(3), 259-272. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0032525
• Kosaki, Y., Austen, J., & McGregor, A. (2013). Overshadowing of geometry learning by discrete landmarks in the water maze: Effects of relative salience and relative validity of competing cues. Journal of experimental psychology. Animal behavior processes, 39(2), 126-139. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0031199
• Dymond, S., Haselgrove, M., & McGregor, A. (2013). Clever crows or unbalanced birds?. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 110(5), Article E336. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1218931110
• Poulter, S., Kosaki, Y., Easton, A., & McGregor, A. (2013). Spontaneous object recognition memory is maintained following transformation of global geometric properties. Journal of experimental psychology. Animal behavior processes, 39(1), 93-98. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0030698
• Rosenthal, H., Norman, L., Smith, S., & McGregor, A. (2012). Gender-based navigation stereotype improves men’s search for a hidden goal. Sex Roles, 67(11-12), 682-695. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-012-0205-8
• McGregor, A., Horne, M., Esber, G., & Pearce, J. (2009). Absence of overshadowing between a landmark and geometric cues in a distinctively shaped environment: A test of Miller and Shettleworth (2007). Journal of experimental psychology. Animal behavior processes, 35(3), 357-370. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0014536
• Jones, P., Pearce, J., Davies, V., Good, M., & McGregor, A. (2007). Impaired processing of local geometric features during navigation in a water maze following hippocampal lesions in rats. Behavioral Neuroscience, 121(6), 1258-1271. https://doi.org/10.1037/0735-7044.121.6.1258
• Mui, R., Haselgrove, M., McGregor, A., Futter, J., Heyes, C., & Pearce, J. (2007). The discrimination of natural movement by budgerigars (Melopsittacus undulates) and pigeons (Columba livia). Journal of experimental psychology, 33(4), 371-380. https://doi.org/10.1037/0097-7403.33.4.371
• Honey, R., Marshall, V., McGregor, A., Futter, J., & Good, M. (2007). Revisiting places passed: Sensitization of exploratory activity in rats with hippocampal lesions. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 60(5), 625-634. https://doi.org/10.1080/17470210601155252
• Good, M., Barnes, P., Staal, V., McGregor, A., & Honey, R. (2007). Context- but not familiarity-dependent forms of object recognition are impaired following excitotoxic hippocampal lesions in rats. Behavioral Neuroscience, 121(1), 218-223. https://doi.org/10.1037/0735-7044.121.1.218
• McGregor, A., Saggerson, A., Pearce, J., & Heyes, C. (2006). Blind imitation in pigeons (Columba livia). Animal Behaviour, 72(2), 287-296. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2005.10.026
• McGregor, A., Jones, P., Good, M., & Pearce, J. (2006). Further evidence that rats rely on local rather than global spatial information to locate a hidden goal: Reply to Cheng & Gallistel (2005). Journal of experimental psychology. Animal behavior processes, 32(3), 314-321. https://doi.org/10.1037/0097-7403.32.3.314
• Pearce, J., Graham, M., Good, M., Jones, P., & McGregor, A. (2006). Potentiation, overshadowing and blocking of spatial learning based on the shape of the environment. Journal of experimental psychology. Animal behavior processes, 32(3), 201-214. https://doi.org/10.1037/0097-7403.32.3.201
• Graham, M., Good, M., McGregor, A., & Pearce, J. (2006). Spatial learning based on the shape of the environment is influenced by properties of the objects forming the shape. Journal of experimental psychology. Animal behavior processes, 32(1), 44-59. https://doi.org/10.1037/0097-7403.32.1.44
• Esber, G., McGregor, A., Good, M., Hayward, A., & Pearce, J. (2005). Transfer of spatial behaviour controlled by a landmark array with a distinctive shape
• McGregor, A., Hayward, A., Pearce, J., & Good, M. (2004). Hippocampal lesions disrupt navigation based on the shape of the environment. Behavioral Neuroscience, 118(5), 1011-1021. https://doi.org/10.1037/0735-7044.118.5.1011
• Pearce, J., Good, M., Jones, P., & McGregor, A. (2004). Transfer of spatial behavior between different environments: Implications for theories of spatial learning and for the role of the hippocampus in spatial learning. Journal of experimental psychology. Animal behavior processes, 30(2), 135-147. https://doi.org/10.1037/0097-7403.30.2.135
• McGregor, A., Good, M., & Pearce, J. (2004). Absence of an interaction between navigational strategies based on absolute and relative bearings. Journal of experimental psychology. Animal behavior processes, 30(1), 34-44
• Marshall, V., McGregor, A., Good, M., & Honey, R. (2004). Hippocampal lesions disrupt source-dependent memory. Behavioral Neuroscience, 118, 377-382. https://doi.org/10.1037/0735-7044.118.2.377
• Hayward, A., McGregor, A., Good, M., & Pearce, J. (2003). Absence of overshadowing and blocking between landmarks and the geometric cues provided by the shape of a test arena
• Biegler, R., McGregor, A., Krebs, J., & Healy, S. (2001). A larger hippocampus is associated with longer-lasting spatial memory. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 98, 6941-6944
• McGregor, A., & Healy, S. (1999). Spatial accuracy in food-storing and nonstoring tits. Animal Behaviour, 58, 727-734. https://doi.org/10.1006/anbe.1999.1190
• Biegler, R., McGregor, A., & Healy, S. (1999). How do animals ‘do’ geometry?. Animal Behaviour, 57, F4-F8. https://doi.org/10.1006/anbe.1998.1003