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Updated: May 14, 2026
13:04
Measuring the Subjective Value of Risky and Ambiguous Options using Experimental Economics and Functional MRI Methods
Published on: September 19, 2012
Neural representation of decision confidence.
Jing Chen1, Tingyong Feng, Jinfu Shi
1School of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China.
Behavioural Brain Research
|February 19, 2013
Summary
Understanding decision confidence is key. This study reveals neural mechanisms, linking confidence to the left superior parietal lobule and broader cognitive networks.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Psychology
Background:
- Decision confidence, the certainty of a choice, lacks understanding of its underlying neural mechanisms.
- Existing research primarily focuses on behavioral calibration studies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the neural correlates of decision confidence using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).
- To explore the brain regions involved in estimating confidence during perceptual decision-making.
Main Methods:
- Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was employed to monitor brain activity.
- Subjects performed a perception task involving optional decisions and confidence estimation.
Main Results:
- Optional decisions showed improved accuracy compared to forced decisions, validating the confidence estimation method.
- Decision confidence was primarily associated with neural activity in the superior parietal lobule, anterior cingulate cortex, and superior frontal cortex.
- Neural measures of decision confidence predicted behavioral waiving responses, with left superior parietal lobule activation correlating positively with waiving rate.
Conclusions:
- Decision confidence involves a complex neural network implicated in various cognitive functions.
- The left superior parietal lobule plays a crucial role in representing decision confidence.
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