Biology of Decision Making Flashcards
Fellows (2018) described decisions as a link between ________ of experiences and ______ ________
decisions = link between memory of past experiences and future actions
The prediction-outcome loop first involves having a _____. From this we think of ________ about the outcome. After this, we make a ________, which eventually leads to an ______. Based on the _______ we can monitor the prediction error, which creates a _______ for our next decisions and goals.
Memory Goal Prediction Decision outcome action
1st step = goal
2nd = prediction
3 = decision
4 = Action
5 = outcome
6 = prediction error monitoring
7 = memory
The 3 main goals of decision making are to avoid _____, minimize _____ _____, _____ and ______ _______, and maximize _______.
avoid harm
minimize time cost, effort and missed opportunities
maximize reward
What are 4 factors to consider in the processing of decision making?
Difficulty of the action (effort)
probability of success or failure
Context of the reward
missed opportunities
What are 4 biases in decision making?
sticking with a default option
choosing certain gain over gamble
choosing gamble over certain loss
temporal discounting
What is temporal discounting?
choosing immediate (lesser) rewards over future rewards
Decisions can be made at 2 main levels:_______________________ decisions and ________________________ decisions
simple perceptual decisions
Complex decisions
In the random-dot motion task moneys will fixate on which circle?
A the circle that the dots move away from
B the circle with more dots inside
C the circle that the dots move towards
D the circle with least dots inside
C circle that dots move towards
In perceptual decision tasks, when we view a stimulus, we accumulate perceptual _________, until we reach a ______ ________. Once this is reached, we make a _________.
accumulate perceptual evidence until detection threshold reached, then we make a decision.
In the random dot task, the detection threshold for a _____ motion detector was reached faster.
A Left
B Right
C Empty
D None of the above
A left
What are the 3 main stages of perceptual decision making?
detection of sensory evidence (categories)
Integration of evidence over time
checking if threshold is reached
Evidence can be harder to accumulate if a stimulus is ______, having distracting factors.
noisy
In terms of the areas involved in the accumulation of evidence in the brain, the __/___ area may be involved in feature processing, the _____ cortex and _____ ___frontal cortex may be involved, and the _____________ areas may be involved in representation of actions.
MT/V5 - for feature processing
dorsal pre frontal cortex and parietal cortex
sensorimotor areas for representing actions
For decisions to be made experiences need to be organized into ________ _______ and _____ ______. New _________ help add to these pre-existing models.
experiences organized into internal models and mental maps
new experiences add/alter models
In Tolman’s experiments of maze rats, the rats encoded ______ _______of different maze locations to build a mental map
transitive relations
True or false, mental maps are only useful in spatial tasks for decision making.
False, they are also very useful in non-spatial tasks.
As memory is involved in decision making, which brain area is associated?
A Cingulate Cyrus
B Amygdala
C Hippocampus
D All of the above
C Hippocampus
Shuck et al (2015) found that participants who _______________________ were able to switch strategy in a task and adapt, whereas participants who _________________ were not able to shift strategy.
people who learned association able to shift strategy
people who didn’t learn association not able to shift
In shuck et al (2015) decision making study, fMRI findings showed that ____________ activity predicted strategy shifting despite this area not being involved in ________ processing. This area is also linked to the _________ formation
MFC (medial frontal cortex) activated
despite no involvement in colour processing
MFC also linked to memory formation
We have different cognitive maps for different tasks. A cognitive map for a more sepcific task is called a
A Blank state
B State space
C Space Station
D Hidden state
B State space
What is the name of the point along a mental map which represents the decision we are currently making?
Hidden state
State spaces seem to be represented in the ________ ________ cortex and the _________ ________ cortex in the brain.
orbito frontal and medial frontal cortex
At each hidden state along the state space, possible ______ and potential _______ are evaluated, in a process called________ __________.
possible options and potential outcomes evaluated in process called mental exploration
Which 5 areas are associated in evaluating the subjective value of a goal or reward?
Orbitofrontal cortex
MFC
VMPFC
Striatum
Thalamus
As the striatum is associated in subjective value, which NT system is involved?
A Glutamate
B GABA
C Ach
D Dopaminergic
D Dopaminergic
Lesions to what part of the brain disrupts value judgements and simple preferences/
Frontal lobe
Ventromedial pre frontal cortex lesions lead to people having what to things which may affect decision making?
inconsistent preferences
lack of guilt
In the trust game what is the role of person A vs Person B
Person A decides how much money to give to person B
Person B receives money, which triples, and can give as much as they want back to A
In the trust game, people with VMPFC lesions will in Person A’s position, will _________________, and in person B’s position, will ____________
If person A they will give less to person B
If person B, they will keep nearly all the money rather than returning it
2 other less important areas involved in decision making is the _______ __-______ cortex, which is active in decision paradigms, and the frontal ______.
lateral prefrontal cortex and the frontal pole
In order to maximize reward, Carland et al (2019)suggests that we cannot do what?
engage in more than one activity at a time
A huge factor in influencing the subjective value of something is the ____ _____. For example a coconut might tast nicer than grapes, but coconuts take longer to open and therefore eat.
time cost
When making a decision, more ______ make it difficult to evaluate reward and choose between.
A goals
B Options
C predictions
D Outcomes
B Options
If the decision is difficult or evidence accumulation is noisy or _____, we cannot _________ forever. Instead, we need an ________ _______ to reach the detection threshold quicker and maximize
in hard decisions and slow/noisy evidence accumulations, we cannot deliberate forever, so we need an urgency signal to reach detection threshold quicker and maximize reward
Urgency signals are controlled by projections from the _____ ______ to other ___________ and _____________ areas.
basal ganglia projections to other cognitive and sensorimotor areas
The urgency signal grows during __________ time, is modulated by _____ _____ and is different in different ____________
grows during deliberation time
modulated by task content
different in different individuals
Urgency signals may be useful in animals to move from one ____ to another, in order to maximize _______
move from one patch to another to maximize
