The basic measure in testing validity of an animal model is its prediction validity, which means making true assumptions for a disorder in humans. The necessary features of an animal model are analogy to a disorder in humans, objective testing, effective interventions in humans and the capability of retesting. Structural validity is the capability to retest of the target condition and first sight validity is the measurement of phenomenological similarity. First sight validity points to the surface similarity between the model and the disease and structural validity points to the underlying mechanisms. Anxiety models are mainly used in understanding causes and mechanisms and also determining drug effects. Anxiety in animals, which is similar to humans, can be developed with different environmental conditions. These situations can help to understand and intervene to treat anxiety. Three ways are used in the development of anxiety models: using a new environment, reward and punishment applications, and punishment procedures.
Anxiety models using new environment: These are the methods for establishing and evaluating anxiety models in a new environment, such as elevated plus maze and derivers, elevated T-maze, open field, staircase test, social isolation, novelty suppressed feeding, social interaction, holeboard, predatory odor, operant conşict tests for reward-punishment applications and experiments with punishment procedures such as defensive burying, passive avoidance, foot shock, hot plate and four plate tests.
The purpose of this study is to show the usefulness of the tests in the literature and to compare the advantages and disadvantages in terms of structural validity and first sight validity.