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Multiple reward systems and the prefrontal cortex.

A Robertson1

  • 1Department of Psychology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada.

Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews
|January 1, 1989
PubMed
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Electrical stimulation of the prefrontal cortex provides reinforcing effects, dissociable from other brain regions. Different prefrontal divisions support distinct reward processes, suggesting specialized neural systems for reinforcement.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Behavioral Neuroscience
  • Cognitive Neuroscience

Background:

  • Electrical stimulation of prefrontal cortex (PFC) divisions acts as a reinforcing stimulus.
  • Self-stimulation studies reveal dissociable substrates for PFC reward compared to ventral diencephalic sites.
  • Evidence suggests distinct processes underlie self-stimulation within medial and sulcal PFC divisions.

Purpose of the Study:

  • Investigate the functional significance and organization of multiple, autonomous prefrontal subsystems involved in reinforcement.
  • Explore the relationship between PFC division functions and stimulation-induced reward characteristics.
  • Determine if distinct rewarding events or attributes are processed by separate neural systems.

Main Methods:

  • Electrical stimulation of mediodorsal and sulcal PFC areas.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Behavioral, anatomical, and pharmacological analyses of self-stimulation.
  • Studies of restricted prefrontal lesions.
  • Conditioning experiments assessing stimulus-reinforcer and response-reinforcer learning.

    • Main Results:

    • Prefrontal cortex (PFC) reward substrates are dissociable from ventral diencephalic sites.
    • Medial and sulcal PFC divisions exhibit dissociable self-stimulation processes.
    • Prefrontal lesions cause selective deficits in learning stimulus-reinforcer and response-reinforcer relations.
    • Rewarding stimulation effects are preferentially associated with sensory events matching each division's functional specialization.

    Conclusions:

    • Multiple, largely autonomous prefrontal subsystems are involved in reinforcement.
    • Distinct rewarding events or attributes are processed by dissociable neural systems within the PFC.
    • The organization of dissociable self-stimulation pathways reflects specialized processing of reward information.