Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 9, 2026

Operant Protocols for Assessing the Cost-benefit Analysis During Reinforced Decision Making by Rodents
Published on: September 10, 2018
Role for cingulate motor area cells in voluntary movement selection based on reward
1Department of Physiology, Tohoku University School of Medicine, Sendai, 980, Japan.
Abstract:
Most natural actions are chosen voluntarily from many possible choices. An action is often chosen based on the reward that it is expected to produce. What kind of cellular activity in which area of the cerebral cortex is involved in selecting an action according to the expected reward value? Results of an analysis in monkeys of cellular activity during the performance of reward-based motor selection and the effects of chemical inactivation are presented. We suggest that cells in the rostral cingulate motor area, one of the higher order motor areas in the cortex, play a part in processing the reward information for motor selection.
Related Concept Videos
Motor and Sensory Areas of the Cortex
Motor Areas
The motor areas located in the frontal lobe are central to controlling voluntary movements. This region is further subdivided into the primary motor cortex and the premotor cortex.
Diencephalon: Thalamus and Information Relay
Major Somatic Sensory Pathways
Direct Motor Pathways
The corticospinal tract is responsible for the voluntary movement of the limbs and trunk. It originates in the cerebral cortex of the brain and descends through the cerebrum's internal capsule and the...
Indirect Motor Pathways
The vestibulospinal tract originates in the vestibular nuclei of the brainstem. The vestibular system detects changes in...
Somatosensory, Motor, and Association Cortex

