scholarly journals Dissociable Contributions of Imagination and Willpower to the Malleability of Human Patience

2017 ◽  
Vol 28 (7) ◽  
pp. 894-906 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adrianna C. Jenkins ◽  
Ming Hsu
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Functional Connectivity ◽  
Intertemporal Choice ◽  
Framing Effects ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Behavioral Experiment ◽  
Neural Responses ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Human Functioning

The ability to exercise patience is important for human functioning. Although it is known that patience can be promoted by using top-down control, or willpower, to override impatient impulses, patience is also malleable—in particular, susceptible to framing effects—in ways that are difficult to explain using willpower alone. So far, the mechanisms underlying framing effects on patience have been elusive. We investigated the role of imagination in these effects. In a behavioral experiment (Experiment 1), a classic framing manipulation (sequence framing) increased self-reported and independently coded imagination during intertemporal choice. In an investigation of neural responses during decision making (Experiment 2), sequence framing increased the extent to which patience was related to activation in brain regions associated with imagination, relative to activation in regions associated with willpower, and increased functional connectivity of brain regions associated with imagination, but not willpower, relative to regions associated with valuation. Our results suggest that sequence framing can increase the role of imagination in decision making without increasing the exertion of willpower.

scholarly journals Frontoparietal dynamics and value accumulation in intertemporal choice

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qingfang Liu ◽  
Woojong Yi ◽  
Christian A. Rodriguez ◽  
Samuel M. McClure ◽  
Brandon M. Turner
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Time Delay ◽  
Functional Connectivity ◽  
Computational Model ◽  
Intertemporal Choice ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Accumulation Process ◽  
Stimulus Processing ◽  
Subjective Value

AbstractIntertemporal choice requires choosing between a smaller reward available after a shorter time delay and a larger reward available after a longer time delay. Previous studies suggest that intertemporal preferences are formed by generating a subjective value of the monetary rewards that depends on reward amount and the associated time delay. Neuroimaging results indicate that this subjective value is tracked by ventral medial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) and ventral striatum. Subsequently, an accumulation process, subserved by a network including dorsal medial frontal cortex (dmFC), dorsal lateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) and posterior parietal cortex (pPC), selects a choice based on the subjective values. The mechanisms of how value accumulation interacts with subjective valuation to make a choice, and how brain regions communicate during decision making are undetermined. We developed and performed an EEG experiment that parametrically manipulated the probability of preferring delayed larger rewards. A computational model equipped with time and reward information transformation, selective attention, and stochastic value accumulation mechanisms was constructed and fit to choice and response time data using a hierarchical Bayesian approach.Phase-based functional connectivity between putative dmFC and pPC was found to be associated with stimulus processing and to resemble the reconstructed accumulation dynamics from the best performing computational model across experimental conditions. By combining computational modeling and phase-based functional connectivity, our results suggest an association between value accumulation, choice competition, and frontoparietal connectivity in intertemporal choice.Author summaryIntertemporal choice is a prominent experimental assay for impulsivity. Behavior in the task involves several cognitive functions including valuation, action selection and self-control. It is unknown how these different functions are temporally implemented during the course of decision making. In the current study, we combined formal computational models of intertemporal choice with a phase-based EEG measure of activity across brain regions to show that functional connectivity between dmFC and pPC reflects cognitive mechanisms of both visual stimulus processing and choice value accumulation. The result supports the notion that dynamic interaction between frontopatietal regions instantiates the critical value accumulation process in intertemporal choice.

scholarly journals The Human Intraparietal Sulcus Modulates Task-Evoked Functional Connectivity

2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 875-887
Author(s):  
Kai Hwang ◽  
James M Shine ◽  
Dillan Cellier ◽  
Mark D’Esposito
Keyword(s):  
Functional Connectivity ◽  
Temporal Cortex ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Intraparietal Sulcus ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Adaptive Communication ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Functional Connectivity Strength ◽  
Ventral Temporal Cortex ◽  
Cortical Regions

Abstract Past studies have demonstrated that flexible interactions between brain regions support a wide range of goal-directed behaviors. However, the neural mechanisms that underlie adaptive communication between brain regions are not well understood. In this study, we combined theta-burst transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and functional magnetic resonance imaging to investigate the sources of top-down biasing signals that influence task-evoked functional connectivity. Subjects viewed sequences of images of faces and buildings and were required to detect repetitions (2-back vs. 1-back) of the attended stimuli category (faces or buildings). We found that functional connectivity between ventral temporal cortex and the primary visual cortex (VC) increased during processing of task-relevant stimuli, especially during higher memory loads. Furthermore, the strength of functional connectivity was greater for correct trials. Increases in task-evoked functional connectivity strength were correlated with increases in activity in multiple frontal, parietal, and subcortical (caudate and thalamus) regions. Finally, we found that TMS to superior intraparietal sulcus (IPS), but not to primary somatosensory cortex, decreased task-specific modulation in connectivity patterns between the primary VC and the parahippocampal place area. These findings demonstrate that the human IPS is a source of top-down biasing signals that modulate task-evoked functional connectivity among task-relevant cortical regions.

scholarly journals An information processing view of framing effects: The role of causal schemas in decision making

1996 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jerwen Jou ◽  
James Shanteau ◽  
Richard Jackson Harris
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Information Processing ◽  
Framing Effects

scholarly journals On the role of the corpus callosum in interhemispheric functional connectivity in humans

2017 ◽  
Vol 114 (50) ◽  
pp. 13278-13283 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jarod L. Roland ◽  
Abraham Z. Snyder ◽  
Carl D. Hacker ◽  
Anish Mitra ◽  
Joshua S. Shimony ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Functional Connectivity ◽  
Corpus Callosum ◽  
Parietal Lobe ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Resting State Functional Connectivity ◽  
Limited Sample ◽  
Temporal Correlations ◽  
Before And After

Resting state functional connectivity is defined in terms of temporal correlations between physiologic signals, most commonly studied using functional magnetic resonance imaging. Major features of functional connectivity correspond to structural (axonal) connectivity. However, this relation is not one-to-one. Interhemispheric functional connectivity in relation to the corpus callosum presents a case in point. Specifically, several reports have documented nearly intact interhemispheric functional connectivity in individuals in whom the corpus callosum (the major commissure between the hemispheres) never develops. To investigate this question, we assessed functional connectivity before and after surgical section of the corpus callosum in 22 patients with medically refractory epilepsy. Section of the corpus callosum markedly reduced interhemispheric functional connectivity. This effect was more profound in multimodal associative areas in the frontal and parietal lobe than primary regions of sensorimotor and visual function. Moreover, no evidence of recovery was observed in a limited sample in which multiyear, longitudinal follow-up was obtained. Comparison of partial vs. complete callosotomy revealed several effects implying the existence of polysynaptic functional connectivity between remote brain regions. Thus, our results demonstrate that callosal as well as extracallosal anatomical connections play a role in the maintenance of interhemispheric functional connectivity.

FRAGILE HEGEMONY, FLEXIBLE AUTHORITARIANISM, AND GOVERNING FROM BELOW: POLITICIANS' REPORTS IN EARLY REPUBLICAN TURKEY

2011 ◽  
Vol 43 (4) ◽  
pp. 699-719 ◽  
Author(s):  
Murat Metinsoy
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Public Opinion ◽  
Social Engineering ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Party Government ◽  
The People ◽  
State And Society ◽  
Early Republican ◽  
Turkish State

AbstractThis article scrutinizes election district and inspection district reports written by the deputies of the Turkish single-party government and the role of these reports in state decision making. Underscoring social discontent and the fragile hegemony of the new regime—both of which motivated the republican elite to monitor state and party administrations and public opinion—the article argues that the practice of reporting was neither a project of social engineering nor a practice peculiar to the Turkish state but rather a requirement of a polity concerned with the opinion of its citizens. In the absence of direct political participation of the people in government, the reports mediated between the state and society. Contrary to conventional accounts of the single-party period, the article argues that the republican elite did not govern the country through top-down decrees but instead sought to ascertain public opinion and its own administrative defects so as to consolidate its fragile hegemony. Based on these findings, I propose that we redefine the early republican state as a flexible authoritarian regime that was not detached from the society.

scholarly journals Morality recruits neural reward circuitry to shape economic decision making

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jie Liu ◽  
Xiaoxuan Huang ◽  
Chong Liao ◽  
Fang Cui
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Functional Connectivity ◽  
Investment Decision ◽  
Investment Project ◽  
Outcome Evaluation ◽  
Neural Responses ◽  
Economic Decision ◽  
Reward Circuitry ◽  
Economic Decision Making ◽  
Moral Valence

AbstractThe present study combined a novel hypothetical investment game with functional magnetic resonance imaging systemtically examined how morality modulates economic decision making in decision phase and outcome phase. We manipulated the morality of the investments by choosing each investment project based on subjective ratings on their moral valence and social benefits. There were three categories of investment morality: Green (moral), Red (immoral), and Neutral. The behavioral and neural responses during the investment decision and outcome phases were recorded and compared. Results showed that: behaviorally, people are willing to invest a larger amount of money into a moral project that may benefit society than they are into an immoral project that they think will harm society. They also rate gains in moral investments as more pleasant and losses as the most unpleasant. In the brain, we found that the reward system, especially the bilateral striatum, was involved in modulating functional connectivity during both phases, but in different ways. During decision making, the functional connectivity between fusiform gyrus and striatum might underlie the observed investing bias (Green over Red projects), while the covariation of BOLD signals in bilateral striatum with the behavioral tendency might explain the effect observed during the outcome evaluations. Our study provides evidence that morality modulates both the decision making and the outcome evaluation in economic situations.

scholarly journals THE ROLE OF NUMERACY AND IMPULSIVITY IN INTERTEMPORAL CHOICE AND DECISION MAKING

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 254-272 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiuqing Cheng
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Intertemporal Choice ◽  
Choice Preference ◽  
Psychological Mechanisms ◽  
Growing Body ◽  
Intertemporal Choices

A growing body of research has indicated a relationship between numeracy and decision making and that lower numerate people display more disadvantageous decisions. In the domain of intertemporal choice, researchers have long been using impulsivity to address choice preference. To further illuminate the psychological mechanisms of making intertemporal choices, the present study examined the role of impulsivity and numeracy in intertemporal choice, in the presence of each other. The study adopted both subjective and numeracy scales. These scales correlated with each other and with intertemporal choice preference. Moreover, it was found that after controlling for impulsivity, the object numeracy was significantly associated with choice preference, with higher numerate participants showing a stronger preference toward the later larger gains over the sooner smaller gains. Thus, the study indicated that intertemporal choice preference could be attributed to both impulsivity and numeracy.

scholarly journals The indispensable role of the cerebellum in visual divergent thinking

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhenni Gao ◽  
Xiaojin Liu ◽  
Delong Zhang ◽  
Ming Liu ◽  
Ning Hao
Keyword(s):  
Functional Connectivity ◽  
Frontal Cortex ◽  
Divergent Thinking ◽  
Resting State Fmri ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Intrinsic Activity ◽  
Group Differences ◽  
Precentral Gyrus ◽  
Crus I

Abstract Recent research has shown that the cerebellum is involved not only in motor control but also in higher-level activities, which are closely related to creativity. This study aimed to explore the role of the cerebellum in visual divergent thinking based on its intrinsic activity. To this end, we selected the resting-state fMRI data of high- (n = 22) and low-level creativity groups (n = 22), and adopted the voxel-wise, seed-wise, and dynamic functional connectivity to identify the differences between the two groups. Furthermore, the topological properties of the cerebello-cerebral network and their relations with visual divergent thinking were calculated. The voxel-wise functional connectivity results indicated group differences across the cerebellar (e.g. lobules VI, VIIb, Crus I, and Crus II) and cerebral regions (e.g. superior frontal cortex, middle frontal cortex, and inferior parietal gyrus), as well as the cerebellar lobules (e.g. lobules VIIIa, IX, and X) and the cerebral brain regions (the cuneus and precentral gyrus). We found a significant correlation between visual divergent thinking and activities of the left lobules VI, VIIb, Crus I, and Crus II, which are associated with executive functions. Our overall results provide novel insight into the important role of the cerebellum in visual divergent thinking.

scholarly journals Decision-making for nature’s contributions to people in the Cape Floristic Region: the role of values, rules and knowledge

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emmeline N. Topp ◽  
Jacqueline Loos ◽  
Berta Martín-López
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Nature Conservation ◽  
Cape Floristic Region ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Bottom Up ◽  
Family Ties ◽  
Relational Values ◽  
Dynamic Relationships ◽  
Privately Owned

AbstractNature conservation on privately owned land depends on land managers’ decision-making. Interactions between values, rules and knowledge (vrk) underpin decision-making, thus, it is important to understand these interactions to support conservation intentions. We investigated how different sets of vrk determine the decision-making context regarding the management and conservation of renosterveld, a critically endangered ecosystem in the Cape Floristic Region, and how this relates to land managers’ perceptions of nature’s contributions to people (NCP). From interviews with thirty land managers, we identified nine value types, four rule types, three knowledge types and 13 different NCP. We found that different vrk combinations can be grouped into three decision-making contexts: Bottom-up conservation, Top-down conservation and Utility. Each context is associated with the perception of different beneficial and detrimental NCP. Regulating NCP are perceived across all contexts, whereas more non-material NCP are associated with a Bottom-up conservation context and relational values, such as family ties. The prevalence of relational values in Bottom-up and Top-down conservation contexts illustrates the complexity and non-substitutability of the dynamic relationships between renosterveld and people. This indicates the importance of plural valuation in nature conservation to foster diverse NCP provided by renosterveld.

Task-positive Functional Connectivity of the Default Mode Network Transcends Task Domain

2015 ◽  
Vol 27 (12) ◽  
pp. 2369-2381 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda Elton ◽  
Wei Gao
Keyword(s):  
Functional Connectivity ◽  
Task Performance ◽  
Default Mode Network ◽  
Inferior Frontal Gyrus ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Positive Functional ◽  
Default Mode ◽  
Goal Directed Behavior ◽  
Increased Activity

The default mode network (DMN) was first recognized as a set of brain regions demonstrating consistently greater activity during rest than during a multitude of tasks. Originally, this network was believed to interfere with goal-directed behavior based on its decreased activity during many such tasks. More recently, however, the role of the DMN during goal-directed behavior was established for internally oriented tasks, in which the DMN demonstrated increased activity. However, the well-documented hub position and information-bridging potential of midline DMN regions indicate that there is more to uncover regarding its functional contributions to goal-directed tasks, which may be based on its functional interactions rather than its level of activation. An investigation of task-related changes in DMN functional connectivity during a series of both internal and external tasks would provide the requisite investigation for examining the role of the DMN during goal-directed task performance. In this study, 20 participants underwent fMRI while performing six tasks spanning diverse internal and external domains in addition to a resting-state scan. We hypothesized that the DMN would demonstrate “task-positive” (i.e., positively contributing to task performance) changes in functional connectivity relative to rest regardless of the direction of task-related changes in activity. Indeed, our results demonstrate significant increases in DMN connectivity with task-promoting regions (e.g., anterior insula, inferior frontal gyrus, middle frontal gyrus) across all six tasks. Furthermore, canonical correlation analyses indicated that the observed task-related connectivity changes were significantly associated with individual differences in task performance. Our results indicate that the DMN may not only support a “default” mode but may play a greater role in both internal and external tasks through flexible coupling with task-relevant brain regions.

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