Responsibility modulates the neural correlates of regret during the sequential risk-taking task

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Cognitive Psychology
• Decision Science

Background:

• Regret is a fundamental human emotion influencing decision-making.
• The role of perceived responsibility in modulating regret and its neural underpinnings remains underexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate how varying levels of responsibility affect the neural correlates of regret.
• To examine brain activity during a risk-taking task under conditions of high versus low personal responsibility.

Main Methods:

• Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was employed to monitor brain activity.
• Participants engaged in a sequential box-opening task with manipulated responsibility (Self vs. Computer control).
• Behavioral data on experienced regret and neural activation patterns were analyzed.

Main Results:

• Behaviorally, higher responsibility led to more regret for losses and more relief for gains.
• Neural activity differed based on responsibility and outcome: high responsibility showed increased mPFC, pgACC, mOFC, and striatum activation for gains.
• Low responsibility trials showed greater dACC and insula activation for losses, while high responsibility trials showed more striatum activity during losses.

Conclusions:

• The level of personal responsibility significantly modulates the subjective experience and neural processing of regret.
• Brain regions including the frontal cortex, striatum, and insula are sensitive to responsibility manipulations during decision-making and outcome evaluation.
• Findings underscore the intricate relationship between agency, emotion, and neural function.