Brain activations associated with shifts in response criterion on a recognition test

Sensitivity and bias can be manipulated independently on a recognition test. The goal of this fMRI study was to determine whether neural activations associated with manipulations of a decision criterion would be anatomically distinct from neural activations associated with manipulations of memory strength and episodic retrieval. The results indicated that activations associated with shifting criteria (a manipulation of bias) were located in bilateral regions of the lateral cerebellum, lateral parietal lobe, and the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex extending from the supplementary motor area. These regions were anatomically distinct from activations in the prefrontal cortex produced during memory-based retrieval processes (manipulations of sensitivity), which tended to be more medial and anterior. These later activations are consistent with previous studies of episodic retrieval. Determining patterns of neural activations associated with decision-making processes relative to memory processes has important implications for Cognitive Neuroscience, including the use of these patterns to compare memory models in different paradigms.