Pause for thought: response perseveration and personality in gambling

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Neuroscience
• Behavioral Science

Background:

• Response perseveration (RP) is a cognitive bias observed in decision-making tasks.
• Individual differences in personality, particularly approach motivation, may influence RP.
• Pathological gambling is associated with deficits in RP.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the effect of a pause between feedback and subsequent bet on RP in normal volunteers.
• To examine the role of individual differences in approach motivation on RP.
• To explore potential implications for pathological gambling.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a computerized card perseveration task with two conditions: Standard (no pause) and Pause (5-s pause after feedback).
• Measured behavioral outcomes including cards played, money won/lost, and response latency.
• Assessed individual differences using the Carver and White Behavioural Approach System (BAS) scale.

Main Results:

• On the Standard task, higher BAS scores correlated with more cards played and greater losses, indicating impaired RP.
• The 5-s pause abolished these correlations, suggesting reduced influence of approach motivation on RP.
• The pause condition significantly improved RP and reduced financial losses overall.

Conclusions:

• A brief pause following feedback can normalize RP deficits, irrespective of individual approach motivation.
• Findings suggest that interventions incorporating pauses may be beneficial for preventing and treating pathological gambling.
• Individual differences in approach motivation play a role in modulating RP, particularly under time pressure.