scholarly journals Neuro-computational foundations of moral preferences

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giuseppe Ugazio ◽  
Marcus Grueschow ◽  
Rafael Polania ◽  
Claus Lamm ◽  
Philippe Tobler ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Computational Models ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Human Life ◽  
Functional Magnetic Resonance ◽  
Moral Value ◽  
Ventral Medial Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Neural Representations ◽  
Neural Processes ◽  
Behavioral Paradigm ◽  
Decision Mechanisms

Abstract Moral preferences pervade many aspects of our lives, dictating how we ought to behave, whom we can marry and even what we eat. Despite their relevance, one fundamental question remains unanswered: where do individual moral preferences come from? It is often thought that all types of preferences reflect properties of domain-general neural decision mechanisms that employ a common ‘neural currency’ to value choice options in many different contexts. This view, however, appears at odds with the observation that many humans consider it intuitively wrong to employ the same scale to compare moral value (e.g. of a human life) with material value (e.g. of money). In this paper, we directly test if moral subjective values are represented by similar neural processes as financial subjective values. In a study combining functional magnetic resonance imaging with a novel behavioral paradigm, we identify neural representations of the subjective values of human lives or financial payoffs by means of structurally identical computational models. Correlating isomorphic model variables from both domains with brain activity reveals specific patterns of neural activity that selectively represent values in the moral (right temporo-parietal junction) or financial (ventral-medial prefrontal cortex) domain. Intriguingly, our findings show that human lives and money are valued in (at least partially) distinct neural currencies, supporting theoretical proposals that human moral behavior is guided by processes that are distinct from those underlying behavior driven by personal material benefit.

scholarly journals Neuro-Computational Foundations of Moral Preferences

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giuseppe Ugazio ◽  
Marcus Grueschow ◽  
Rafael Polania ◽  
Claus Lamm ◽  
Philippe N. Tobler ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Computational Models ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Human Life ◽  
Neural Mechanisms ◽  
Common Currency ◽  
Moral Value ◽  
Neural Representations ◽  
Behavioral Paradigm ◽  
The Common ◽  
Decision Mechanisms

AbstractMoral preferences pervade many aspects of our lives, dictating how we ought to behave, whom we can marry, and even what we eat. Despite their relevance, one fundamental question remains unanswered: Where do individual moral preferences come from? It is often thought that all types of preferences reflect properties of domain-general neural decision mechanisms that employ a common “neural currency” to value choice options in many different contexts. This assumption, however, appears at odds with the observation that many humans consider it intuitively wrong to employ the same scale to compare moral value (e.g., of a human life) with material value (e.g., of money). In this paper, we directly challenge the common-currency hypothesis by comparing the neural mechanisms that represent moral and financial subjective values. In a study combining fMRI with a novel behavioral paradigm, we identify neural representations of the subjective values of human lives or financial payoffs by means of structurally identical computational models. Correlating isomorphic model variables from both domains with brain activity reveals specific patterns of neural activity that selectively represent values in the moral (in the rTPJ) or financial (in the vmPFC) domain. Thus, our findings show that human lives and money are valued in distinct neural currencies, supporting theoretical proposals that human moral behavior is guided by processes that are distinct from those underlying behavior driven by personal material benefit.

scholarly journals The context-dependent nature of the neural implementation of intentions

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sebo Uithol ◽  
Kai Görgen ◽  
Doris Pischedda ◽  
Ivan Toni ◽  
John-Dylan Haynes
Keyword(s):  
Essential Feature ◽  
Intentional Action ◽  
Context Dependency ◽  
Voluntary Action ◽  
Fmri Data ◽  
Experimental Setup ◽  
Functional Magnetic Resonance ◽  
Resonance Imaging ◽  
Neural Representations ◽  
Neural Processes

AbstractMany studies have identified networks in parietal and prefrontal cortex that are involved in intentional action. Yet, knowledge about what these networks exactly encoded is still scarce. In this study we look into the content of those processes. We ask whether the neural representations of intentions are context- and reason-invariant, or whether these processes depend on the context we are in, and the reasons we have for choosing an action. We use a combination of functional magnetic resonance imaging and multivariate decoding to directly assess the context- and reason-dependency of the processes underlying intentional action. We were able to decode action decisions in the same context and for the same reasons from the fMRI data, in line with previous decoding studies. Furthermore, we could decode action decisions across different reasons for choosing an action. Importantly, though, decoding decisions across different contexts was at chance level. These results suggest that for voluntary action, there is considerable context-dependency in intention representations. This suggests that established invariance in neural processes may not reflect an essential feature of a certain process, but that this stable character could be dependent on invariance in the experimental setup, in line with predictions from situated cognition theory.

scholarly journals Regions and Connections: Complementary Approaches to Characterize Brain Organization and Function

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 117-133 ◽  
Author(s):  
Corey Horien ◽  
Abigail S. Greene ◽  
R. Todd Constable ◽  
Dustin Scheinost
Keyword(s):  
Functional Organization ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Functional Magnetic Resonance ◽  
Resonance Imaging ◽  
Brain Organization ◽  
Neural Processes ◽  
Relative Utility ◽  
And Function ◽  
Brain Behavior ◽  
The Brain

Functional magnetic resonance imaging has proved to be a powerful tool to characterize spatiotemporal patterns of human brain activity. Analysis methods broadly fall into two camps: those summarizing properties of a region and those measuring interactions among regions. Here we pose an unappreciated question in the field: What are the strengths and limitations of each approach to study fundamental neural processes? We explore the relative utility of region- and connection-based measures in the context of three topics of interest: neurobiological relevance, brain-behavior relationships, and individual differences in brain organization. In each section, we offer illustrative examples. We hope that this discussion offers a novel and useful framework to support efforts to better understand the macroscale functional organization of the brain and how it relates to behavior.

scholarly journals Decoding individual identity from brain activity elicited in imagining common experiences

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew James Anderson ◽  
Kelsey McDermott ◽  
Brian Rooks ◽  
Kathi L. Heffner ◽  
David Dodell-Feder ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Brain Activity ◽  
Individual Identity ◽  
Group Level ◽  
Functional Magnetic Resonance ◽  
Resonance Imaging ◽  
Neural Representations ◽  
Semantic Models ◽  
Computational Semantic ◽  
Event Representations ◽  
Model Scenarios

AbstractEveryone experiences common events differently. This leads to personal memories that presumably provide neural signatures of individual identity when events are reimagined. We present initial evidence that these signatures can be read from brain activity. To do this, we progress beyond previous work that has deployed generic group-level computational semantic models to distinguish between neural representations of different events, but not revealed interpersonal differences in event representations. We scanned 26 participants’ brain activity using functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging as they vividly imagined themselves personally experiencing 20 common scenarios (e.g., dancing, shopping, wedding). Rather than adopting a one-size-fits-all approach to generically model scenarios, we constructed personal models from participants’ verbal descriptions and self-ratings of sensory/motor/cognitive/spatiotemporal and emotional characteristics of the imagined experiences. We demonstrate that participants’ neural representations are better predicted by their own models than other peoples’. This showcases how neuroimaging and personalized models can quantify individual-differences in imagined experiences.

scholarly journals Spatial Attention Enhances the Neural Representation of Invisible Signals Embedded in Noise

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cooper A. Smout ◽  
Jason B. Mattingley
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Attention ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Neural Representation ◽  
Neural Responses ◽  
Neural Representations ◽  
Neural Processes ◽  
Eeg Data ◽  
Noise Image ◽  
Direct Competition ◽  
Subharmonic Response

AbstractRecent evidence suggests that voluntary spatial attention can affect neural processing of visual stimuli that do not enter conscious awareness (i.e. invisible stimuli), supporting the notion that attention and awareness are dissociable processes (Watanabe et al., 2011; Wyart, Dehaene, & Tallon-Baudry, 2012). To date, however, no study has demonstrated that these effects reflect enhancement of the neural representation of invisible stimuli per se, as opposed to other neural processes not specifically tied to the stimulus in question. In addition, it remains unclear whether spatial attention can modulate neural representations of invisible stimuli in direct competition with highly salient and visible stimuli. Here we developed a novel electroencephalography (EEG) frequency-tagging paradigm to obtain a continuous readout of human brain activity associated with visible and invisible signals embedded in dynamic noise. Participants (N = 23) detected occasional contrast changes in one of two flickering image streams on either side of fixation. Each image stream contained a visible or invisible signal embedded in every second noise image, the visibility of which was titrated and checked using a two-interval forced-choice detection task. Steady-state visual-evoked potentials (SSVEPs) were computed from EEG data at the signal and noise frequencies of interest. Cluster-based permutation analyses revealed significant neural responses to both visible and invisible signals across posterior scalp electrodes. Control analyses revealed that these responses did not reflect a subharmonic response to noise stimuli. In line with previous findings, spatial attention increased the neural representation of visible signals. Crucially, spatial attention also increased the neural representation of invisible signals. As such, the present results replicate and extend previous studies by demonstrating that attention can modulate the neural representation of invisible signals that are in direct competition with highly salient masking stimuli.

scholarly journals Treating the lungs via the brain: Mechanisms underpinning improvements in breathlessness with pulmonary rehabilitation

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mari Herigstad ◽  
Olivia Faull ◽  
Anja Hayen ◽  
Eleanor Evans ◽  
Maxine F. Hardinge ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pulmonary Rehabilitation ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Chronic Obstructive ◽  
Related Activity ◽  
Attention Regulation ◽  
Obstructive Pulmonary Disease ◽  
Psychological Measures ◽  
Neural Representations ◽  
Neural Processes

ABSTRACTBackgroundBreathlessness in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is often discordant with airway pathophysiology (“over-perception”). Pulmonary rehabilitation has profound effects upon breathlessness, without influencing lung function. Learned associations can influence brain mechanisms of sensory perception. We therefore hypothesised that improvements in breathlessness with pulmonary rehabilitation may be explained by changing neural representations of learned associations, reducing “over-perception”.MethodsIn 31 patients with COPD, we tested how pulmonary rehabilitation altered the relationship between brain activity during learned associations with a word-cue task (using functional magnetic resonance imaging), clinical, and psychological measures of breathlessness.ResultsImprovements in breathlessness and breathlessness-anxiety correlated with reductions in word-cue related activity in the insula and anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) (breathlessness), and increased activations in attention regulation and motor networks (breathlessness-anxiety). Greater baseline (pre-rehabilitation) activity in the insula, ACC and prefrontal cortex correlated with the magnitude of improvement in breathlessness and breathlessness anxiety.ConclusionsPulmonary rehabilitation reduces the influence of learned associations upon neural processes that generate breathlessness. Patients with stronger word-cue related activity at baseline benefitted more from pulmonary rehabilitation. These findings highlight the importance of targeting learned associations within treatments for COPD, demonstrating how neuroimaging may contribute to patient stratification and more successful personalised therapy.

scholarly journals Repetition suppression: a means to index neural representations using BOLD?

2016 ◽  
Vol 371 (1705) ◽  
pp. 20150355 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helen C. Barron ◽  
Mona M. Garvert ◽  
Timothy E. J. Behrens
Keyword(s):  
Human Brain ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Multivariate Techniques ◽  
Physiological Basis ◽  
Non Invasive ◽  
Repetition Suppression ◽  
Neural Representations ◽  
Neural Processes ◽  
Neural Populations ◽  
Multivariate Pattern

Understanding how the human brain gives rise to complex cognitive processes remains one of the biggest challenges of contemporary neuroscience. While invasive recording in animal models can provide insight into neural processes that are conserved across species, our understanding of cognition more broadly relies upon investigation of the human brain itself. There is therefore an imperative to establish non-invasive tools that allow human brain activity to be measured at high spatial and temporal resolution. In recent years, various attempts have been made to refine the coarse signal available in functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), providing a means to investigate neural activity at the meso-scale, i.e. at the level of neural populations. The most widely used techniques include repetition suppression and multivariate pattern analysis. Human neuroscience can now use these techniques to investigate how representations are encoded across neural populations and transformed by relevant computations. Here, we review the physiological basis, applications and limitations of fMRI repetition suppression with a brief comparison to multivariate techniques. By doing so, we show how fMRI repetition suppression holds promise as a tool to reveal complex neural mechanisms that underlie human cognitive function. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Interpreting BOLD: a dialogue between cognitive and cellular neuroscience’.

KONSEP DAN IMPLEMENTASI ETIKA ISLAM DALAM DUNIA BISNIS

2017 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nurul Fatima Hasan
Keyword(s):  
Business Ethics ◽  
Business Ethic ◽  
Human Life ◽  
Ethical Dimension ◽  
Moral Value ◽  
Business People ◽  
Islamic Business Ethics ◽  
The Right

Indeed, in terms of the whole implementation of life has been arranged in the view of Islamic teachings to regulate all human life including in relation to the implementation of the economy and business. Islam does not allow any person to work haphazardly to achieve his/her goals and desires by justifying any means such as committing fraud, cheating, false vows, usury, and any other vanity deeds. But, Islam has given a boundary or line between the allowable and the unlawful, the right and wrong and the lawful and the unlawful. These limits or dividing lines are known as ethics. Behavior in business or trade is also not escaped from the moral value or business ethics values. Islamic business ethics is of which adheres to the principle of unity, equilibrium principle, freewill principle, responsibility principle, It is important for business people to integrate that ethical dimension into the framework or scope of the business. Keyword: Ethics, Business Ethics, Islamic Business Ethic.

scholarly journals Neural alignment predicts learning outcomes in students taking an introduction to computer science course

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Meir Meshulam ◽  
Liat Hasenfratz ◽  
Hanna Hillman ◽  
Yun-Fei Liu ◽  
Mai Nguyen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Computer Science ◽  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Activity Patterns ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Final Exam ◽  
Neural Representations ◽  
Real Life Setting ◽  
The Right ◽  
Mri Study

AbstractDespite major advances in measuring human brain activity during and after educational experiences, it is unclear how learners internalize new content, especially in real-life and online settings. In this work, we introduce a neural approach to predicting and assessing learning outcomes in a real-life setting. Our approach hinges on the idea that successful learning involves forming the right set of neural representations, which are captured in canonical activity patterns shared across individuals. Specifically, we hypothesized that learning is mirrored in neural alignment: the degree to which an individual learner’s neural representations match those of experts, as well as those of other learners. We tested this hypothesis in a longitudinal functional MRI study that regularly scanned college students enrolled in an introduction to computer science course. We additionally scanned graduate student experts in computer science. We show that alignment among students successfully predicts overall performance in a final exam. Furthermore, within individual students, we find better learning outcomes for concepts that evoke better alignment with experts and with other students, revealing neural patterns associated with specific learned concepts in individuals.

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