Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Reason and Intuition01:37

Reason and Intuition

The human brain processes information for decision-making using one of two routes: an intuitive system and a rational system (Epstein, 1994; popularized by Kahneman, 2011 as System 1 and System 2, respectively). The intuitive system is quick, impulsive, and operates with minimal effort, relying on emotions or habits to provide cues for what to do next, while the rational system is logical, analytical, deliberate, and methodical. Research in neuropsychology suggests that the brain can only use...
Decision Making01:20

Decision Making

Decision-making is a fundamental cognitive process that involves evaluating alternatives and selecting among them. This process can range from simple choices, such as deciding what to wear, to complex decisions, like choosing a major in college or a career path. The complexity of the decision often dictates the approach we use, which can be broadly categorized into two types: automatic and controlled decision-making.
Automatic decision-making is fast, intuitive, and relies on gut feelings...
Decision Making: Traditional Method01:14

Decision Making: Traditional Method

The process of hypothesis testing based on the traditional method includes calculating the critical value, testing the value of the test statistic using the sample data, and interpreting these values.
First, a specific claim about the population parameter is decided based on the research question and is stated in a simple form. Further, an opposing statement to this claim is also stated. These statements can act as null and alternative hypotheses, out of which a null hypothesis would be a...
Instinct Theory01:29

Instinct Theory

Instinct theory proposes that innate biological instincts, like animal behavioral patterns, primarily drive human behavior. These instincts are inborn, not learned, and are fundamental to decision-making and action. Just as animals rely on instincts for critical survival functions such as migration, nest building, and defense, humans are also believed to exhibit behaviors rooted in evolutionary needs. For example, the instinct to reproduce motivates sexual behavior, while territorial instincts...
Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy01:24

Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy

Cognitive-behavioral therapies (CBTs) are grounded in the belief that our thoughts profoundly influence our emotions and actions. Advocates of CBT emphasize three core assumptions: first, that cognitions are identifiable and measurable; second, that they are central to psychological functioning; and third, that irrational or maladaptive beliefs can be replaced with rational and adaptive ones. This transformative approach to therapy has paved the way for specific models such as Albert Ellis's...
Decision Making: P-value Method01:09

Decision Making: P-value Method

The process of hypothesis testing based on the P-value method includes calculating the P- value using the sample data and interpreting it.
First, a specific claim about the population parameter is proposed. The claim is based on the research question and is stated in a simple form. Further, an opposing statement to the claim  is also stated. These statements can act as null and alternative hypotheses:  a null hypothesis would be a neutral statement while the alternative hypothesis can have a...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

"The Mystery of the Cell Kingdom": an online game to improve the learning of thyroid physiology.

Advances in physiology education·2024
Same author

Rethinking model-based and model-free influences on mental effort and striatal prediction errors.

Nature human behaviour·2023
Same author

Humans primarily use model-based inference in the two-stage task.

Nature human behaviour·2020
Same author

A note on the analysis of two-stage task results: How changes in task structure affect what model-free and model-based strategies predict about the effects of reward and transition on the stay probability.

PloS one·2018
Same author

Exploration and recency as the main proximate causes of probability matching: a reinforcement learning analysis.

Scientific reports·2017
Same author

Aging and Parkinson's disease as functional models of temporal order perception.

Neuropsychologia·2015

Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 22, 2026

The Adventures of Fundi Intervention Based on the Cognitive and Emotional Processing in Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder Patients
05:48

The Adventures of Fundi Intervention Based on the Cognitive and Emotional Processing in Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder Patients

Published on: June 12, 2020

A simple artificial life model explains irrational behavior in human decision-making.

Carolina Feher da Silva1, Marcus Vinícius Chrysóstomo Baldo

  • 1Roberto Vieira Laboratory of Sensory Physiology, Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil. carolina.feher.silva@usp.br

Plos One
|May 8, 2012
PubMed
Summary

Humans often make suboptimal decisions like probability matching instead of perseverating. This study shows how cognitive abilities evolved for pattern prediction can lead to this human tendency, even when it

More Related Videos

Errors as a Means of Reducing Impulsive Food Choice
07:07

Errors as a Means of Reducing Impulsive Food Choice

Published on: June 5, 2016

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 22, 2026

The Adventures of Fundi Intervention Based on the Cognitive and Emotional Processing in Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder Patients
05:48

The Adventures of Fundi Intervention Based on the Cognitive and Emotional Processing in Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder Patients

Published on: June 12, 2020

Errors as a Means of Reducing Impulsive Food Choice
07:07

Errors as a Means of Reducing Impulsive Food Choice

Published on: June 5, 2016

Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Science
  • Evolutionary Psychology
  • Behavioral Economics

Background:

  • Humans often exhibit suboptimal decision-making, notably probability matching in repeated binary choice tasks, unlike many species that perseverate.
  • Probability matching, where choices mirror outcome frequencies, contrasts with the optimal strategy of perseverating with the best option.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the cognitive constraints and evolutionary rules that lead to contrasting behaviors (perseveration vs. probability matching).
  • To understand how adaptive cognitive strategies, beneficial in certain environments, might result in suboptimal performance in others.

Main Methods:

  • Simulated the evolution of artificial populations (animats) with varying neural capacities.
  • Fitness was determined by the ability to predict elements in binary sequences of repeating patterns.
  • Tested animats on predicting non-periodical binary sequences after training on different pattern complexities.

Main Results:

  • Animats with limited neural capacity learned short patterns and perseverated on the optimal choice.
  • Animats with larger neural capacity, capable of learning longer patterns, adopted probability matching when faced with non-periodical sequences.
  • Larger-capacity animats, exhibiting probability matching, were outperformed by perseverating animats.

Conclusions:

  • The ability to predict patterns in regular environments can inadvertently lead to probability matching in less structured conditions.
  • Probability matching may be a byproduct of cognitive strategies essential for human evolution.
  • While adaptive in ancestral environments, these cognitive byproducts can result in decision-making inefficiencies in modern contexts.