Understanding Effort-Cost Decision-Making Mechanisms in Mood and Psychotic Disorders: A Computational Modeling...

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Psychiatry
• Decision Science

Background:

• Effort-cost decision-making (ECDM) is crucial for motivation but its underlying mechanisms are unclear.
• Individual differences in ECDM phenotypes may mask distinct cognitive and affective processes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate individual decision-making phenotypes in effort-cost decision-making (ECDM) across five diagnostic groups.
• To examine the association between ECDM phenotype, cognitive functioning, motivation, and diagnostic group.

Main Methods:

• A person-centered modeling approach was used to analyze ECDM phenotypes (systematic vs. non-systematic).
• Participants included healthy controls and individuals with schizophrenia-spectrum disorder, current major depression, remitted major depression, and bipolar I disorder.
• Associations between ECDM phenotype, cognitive function, motivation, and diagnosis were assessed.

Main Results:

• Schizophrenia-spectrum disorder group showed less incorporation of reward value into effort exertion for both cognitive and physical tasks.
• Non-systematic decision-making was linked to lower cognitive functioning across all groups, but not motivation.
• Individuals with schizophrenia-spectrum disorder exhibited steeper effort discounting in both cognitive and physical ECDM.

Conclusions:

• Significant individual differences in ECDM phenotypes exist within and across diagnostic groups.
• Deficits in subjective value representation appear more common in psychosis than in mood disorders.
• Findings highlight the need for personalized approaches to understanding motivational deficits.