Effective Connectivity between Hippocampus and Ventromedial Prefrontal Cortex Controls Preferential Choices from...

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Cognitive Science
• Decision Science

Background:

• Preferential choices often rely on retrieved information, yet the neural basis of decision-making and memory interplay is understudied.
• Understanding how memory influences choices is crucial for cognitive neuroscience.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the neural mechanisms underlying memory-guided decision-making.
• To explore how memory constraints, such as forgetting, impact choice behavior.
• To identify brain regions and their connectivity involved in decisions influenced by memory.

Main Methods:

• Developed a novel task requiring retrieval of choice options from memory.
• Employed cognitive modeling, specifically sequential sampling models, to analyze choice behavior.
• Utilized functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to measure brain activity and connectivity.
• Applied Bayesian modeling to infer the probability of options being remembered.

Main Results:

• Memory-guided decisions align with sequential sampling models but are affected by forgetting.
• Individuals exhibit a bias favoring remembered options, rejecting them only when highly unattractive.
• Higher posterior probability of remembering options correlated with hippocampal activation during memory encoding.
• Increased connectivity between the hippocampus and ventromedial prefrontal cortex during decision-making was associated with the bias towards remembered options.

Conclusions:

• Decisions are significantly constrained by memory, demonstrating a bias towards recalled information.
• Neural activity and connectivity, particularly involving the hippocampus and ventromedial prefrontal cortex, underpin memory-guided choices.
• Memory-related neural activation can be effectively inferred from observed decision-making patterns.