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A neural basis of choking under pressure

Affiliations
  • 1Department of Biomedical Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
  • 2Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Department of Bioengineering, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
  • 3Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Center for Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
  • 4Department of Biomedical Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
  • 5Department of Bioengineering, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
  • 6Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, GA, USA.
  • 7Department of Biomedical Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
  • 8Department of Biomedical Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Neuroscience Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA. Electronic address: schase@cmu.edu.
  • 9Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Department of Bioengineering, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA. Electronic address: aaron.batista@pitt.edu.

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September 13, 2024

Abstract

Incentives tend to drive improvements in performance. But when incentives get too high, we can “choke under pressure” and underperform right when it matters most. What neural processes might lead to choking under pressure? We studied rhesus monkeys performing a challenging reaching task in which they underperformed when an unusually large “jackpot” reward was at stake, and we sought a neural mechanism that might result in that underperformance. We found that increases in reward drive neural activity during movement preparation into, and then past, a zone of optimal performance. We conclude that neural signals of reward and motor preparation interact in the motor cortex (MC) in a manner that can explain why we choke under pressure.

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