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Choice selection and reward anticipation: an fMRI study
Monique Ernst1, Eric E Nelson, Erin B McClure
1Mood and Anxiety Disorders Program, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, 15K North Drive, Bethesda, MD 20892-2670, USA. ernstm@intra.nimh.nih.gov
Neuropsychologia
|August 26, 2004
Summary
Neural activity during decision-making differs between selecting an option and anticipating a reward. High-reward choices recruit the ventral striatum more during selection than anticipation.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Decision Science
Background:
- Decision-making under risk involves complex neural processes.
- Understanding the neural basis of risk-reward evaluation is crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate neural activations during choice selection and reward anticipation in a probabilistic monetary decision-making task.
- To differentiate the neural correlates of risk/reward during selection versus anticipation.
Main Methods:
- Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used in 17 healthy adults.
- Participants completed a novel "wheel of fortune" task involving two-choice decisions with probabilistic monetary outcomes.
- Neural activity was analyzed during choice selection and reward anticipation phases, comparing high-reward/risk to low-reward/risk conditions.
Main Results:
- Choice selection activated visuo-spatial attention, conflict, and action preparation regions.
- Reward anticipation primarily engaged reward processing regions, notably the ventral striatum.
- High-reward/risk conditions showed increased ventral striatum activation during selection, but not anticipation.
- Orbitofrontal cortex (BA 11 and 47) was activated during selection, particularly for high-risk/reward options.
Conclusions:
- Distinct neural pathways support selection and anticipation in probabilistic reward tasks.
- Neural responses to risk and reward differ between the selection and anticipation phases.
- The ventral striatum is differentially modulated by risk/reward during selection and anticipation stages.