1
|
Gadassi Polack R, Mollick JA, Keren H, Joormann J, Watts R. Neural responses to reward valence and magnitude from pre- to early adolescence. Neuroimage 2023; 275:120166. [PMID: 37178821 PMCID: PMC10311119 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2023.120166] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2023] [Revised: 04/04/2023] [Accepted: 05/10/2023] [Indexed: 05/15/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Neural activation during reward processing is thought to underlie critical behavioral changes that take place during the transition to adolescence (e.g., learning, risk-taking). Though literature on the neural basis of reward processing in adolescence is booming, important gaps remain. First, more information is needed regarding changes in functional neuroanatomy in early adolescence. Another gap is understanding whether sensitivity to different aspects of the incentive (e.g., magnitude and valence) changes during the transition into adolescence. We used fMRI from a large sample of preadolescent children to characterize neural responses to incentive valence vs. magnitude during anticipation and feedback, and their change over a period of two years. METHODS Data were taken from the Adolescent Cognitive and Brain DevelopmentSM (ABCD®) study release 3.0. Children completed the Monetary Incentive Delay task at baseline (ages 9-10) and year 2 follow-up (ages 11-12). Based on data from two sites (N = 491), we identified activation-based Regions of Interest (ROIs; e.g., striatum, prefrontal regions, etc.) that were sensitive to trial type (win $5, win $0.20, neutral, lose $0.20, lose $5) during anticipation and feedback phases. Then, in an independent subsample (N = 1470), we examined whether these ROIs were sensitive to valence and magnitude and whether that sensitivity changed over two years. RESULTS Our results show that most ROIs involved in reward processing (including the striatum, prefrontal cortex, and insula) are specialized, i.e., mainly sensitive to either incentive valence or magnitude, and this sensitivity was consistent over a 2-year period. The effect sizes of time and its interactions were significantly smaller (0.002≤η2≤0.02) than the effect size of trial type (0.06≤η2≤0.30). Interestingly, specialization was moderated by reward processing phase but was stable across development. Biological sex and pubertal status differences were few and inconsistent. Developmental changes were mostly evident during success feedback, where neural reactivity increased over time. CONCLUSIONS Our results suggest sub-specialization to valence vs. magnitude within many ROIs of the reward circuitry. Additionally, in line with theoretical models of adolescent development, our results suggest that the ability to benefit from success increases from pre- to early adolescence. These findings can inform educators and clinicians and facilitate empirical research of typical and atypical motivational behaviors during a critical time of development.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Reuma Gadassi Polack
- Psychology Department, Yale University, United States; Psychiatry Department, Yale University, United States; School of Behavioral Sciences, Tel Aviv-Yaffo Academic College, Israel.
| | | | - Hanna Keren
- Faculty of Medicine, Bar-Ilan University, Israel
| | | | - Richard Watts
- Psychology Department, Yale University, United States
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Bretzke M, Wahl H, Plichta MM, Wolff N, Roessner V, Vetter NC, Buse J. Ventral Striatal Activation During Reward Anticipation of Different Reward Probabilities in Adolescents and Adults. Front Hum Neurosci 2021; 15:649724. [PMID: 33958995 PMCID: PMC8093817 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2021.649724] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2021] [Accepted: 03/22/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Adolescence has been linked to an enhanced tolerance of uncertainty and risky behavior and is possibly connected to an increased response toward rewards. However, previous research has produced inconsistent findings. To investigate whether these findings are due to different reward probabilities used in the experimental design, we extended a monetary incentive delay (MID) task by including three different reward probabilities. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, 25 healthy adolescents and 22 adults were studied during anticipation of rewards in the VS. Differently colored cue stimuli indicated either a monetary or verbal trial and symbolized different reward probabilities, to which the participants were blinded. Results demonstrated faster reaction times for lower reward probabilities (33%) in both age groups. Adolescents were slower through all conditions and had less activation on a neural level. Imaging results showed a three-way interaction between age group x condition x reward probability with differences in percent signal change between adolescents and adults for the high reward probabilities (66%, 88%) while adolescents demonstrated differences for the lowest (33%). Therefore, previous inconsistent findings could be due to different reward probabilities, which makes examining these crucial for a better understanding of adolescent and adult behavior.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Maria Bretzke
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Hannes Wahl
- Institute of Neuroradiology, Faculty of Medicine, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Michael M. Plichta
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University Hospital, Goethe University, Frankfurt, Germany
| | - Nicole Wolff
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Veit Roessner
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Nora C. Vetter
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Judith Buse
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Executive functioning moderates neural reward processing in youth. COGNITIVE AFFECTIVE & BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE 2020; 21:105-118. [PMID: 33263153 DOI: 10.3758/s13415-020-00851-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/09/2020] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
Although executive functioning has traditionally been studied in "cool" settings removed from emotional contexts, it is highly relevant in "hot" emotionally salient settings such as reward processing. Furthermore, brain structures related to "cool" executive functioning and "hot" reward-related processes develop simultaneously, yet little is known about how executive functioning modulates neural processes related to reward processing during adolescence, a period of time when these systems are still developing. The present study examined how performance on "cool" behavioral executive functioning measures moderates neural reward processing. Youths (N = 43, Mage = 13.74 years, SD = 1.81 years) completed a child-friendly monetary incentive delay task during fMRI acquisition that captures neural responses to reward anticipation and to reward receipt and omission. Performance on inhibitory control and cognitive flexibility measures, captured outside the scanner, was used to predict brain activation and seed-based connectivity (ventral striatum and amygdala). Across analyses, we found that executive functioning moderated youths' neural responses during both reward anticipation and performance feedback, predominantly with respect to amygdala connectivity with prefrontal/frontal and temporal structures, supporting previous theoretical models of brain development during adolescence. Overall, youths with worse executive functioning had more pronounced differences in neural activation and connectivity between task conditions compared with youths with better executive functioning. This study contributes to elucidating the relationship between "cool" and "hot" processes and our findings demonstrate that simple executive functioning skills moderate more complex processes that involve incorporation of numerous skills in an emotionally salient context, such as reward processing.
Collapse
|
4
|
Aldridge-Waddon L, Vanova M, Munneke J, Puzzo I, Kumari V. Atypical social reward anticipation as a transdiagnostic characteristic of psychopathology: A meta-analytic review and critical evaluation of current evidence. Clin Psychol Rev 2020; 82:101942. [PMID: 33160160 DOI: 10.1016/j.cpr.2020.101942] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2020] [Revised: 09/17/2020] [Accepted: 10/20/2020] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Several psychopathologies (e.g. schizophrenia spectrum conditions, autism spectrum disorders) are characterised by atypical interpersonal and social behaviour, and there is increasing evidence to suggest this atypical social behaviour is related to adjusted behavioural and neural anticipation of social rewards. This review brings together social reward anticipation research in psychopathology (k = 42) and examines the extent to which atypical social reward anticipation is a transdiagnostic characteristic. Meta-analyses of anticipatory reaction times revealed that, in comparison to healthy controls, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, autism spectrum disorder, and schizophrenia spectrum conditions are associated with significantly reduced behavioural anticipation of social rewards. The pooled meta-analysis of anticipatory reaction times found that the full clinical sample demonstrated significant social reward hypoanticipation in comparison to the healthy control group with a medium effect size. A narrative synthesis of meta-analytically ineligible behavioural data, self-report data, and neuroimaging studies complemented the results of the meta-analysis, but also indicated that bipolar disorder, eating disorders, and sexual addiction disorders may be associated with social reward hyperanticipation. The evaluation of existing evidence suggests that future research should better account for factors that affect reward anticipation (e.g. gender, psychotropic medication) and highlights the importance of using stimuli other than happy faces as social rewards.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Luke Aldridge-Waddon
- Division of Psychology, Department of Life Sciences & Centre for Cognitive Neuroscience, College of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Brunel University London, UK.
| | - Martina Vanova
- Division of Psychology, Department of Life Sciences & Centre for Cognitive Neuroscience, College of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Brunel University London, UK
| | - Jaap Munneke
- Division of Psychology, Department of Life Sciences & Centre for Cognitive Neuroscience, College of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Brunel University London, UK
| | - Ignazio Puzzo
- Division of Psychology, Department of Life Sciences & Centre for Cognitive Neuroscience, College of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Brunel University London, UK
| | - Veena Kumari
- Division of Psychology, Department of Life Sciences & Centre for Cognitive Neuroscience, College of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Brunel University London, UK
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Yaple ZA, Yu R, Arsalidou M. Spatial migration of human reward processing with functional development: Evidence from quantitative meta-analyses. Hum Brain Mapp 2020; 41:3993-4009. [PMID: 32638450 PMCID: PMC7469823 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.25103] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2020] [Revised: 06/02/2020] [Accepted: 06/04/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies have shown notable age‐dependent differences in reward processing. We analyzed data from a total of 554 children, 1,059 adolescents, and 1,831 adults from 70 articles. Quantitative meta‐analyses results show that adults engage an extended set of regions that include anterior and posterior cingulate gyri, insula, basal ganglia, and thalamus. Adolescents engage the posterior cingulate and middle frontal gyri as well as the insula and amygdala, whereas children show concordance in right insula and striatal regions almost exclusively. Our data support the notion of reorganization of function over childhood and adolescence and may inform current hypotheses relating to decision‐making across age.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Zachary A Yaple
- Department of Psychology, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Rongjun Yu
- Department of Psychology, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore.,NUS Graduate School for Integrative Sciences and Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Marie Arsalidou
- Department of Psychology, National Research University Higher School of Economics, Moscow, Russian Federation.,Department of Psychology, Faculty of Health, York University, Toronto, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Smith AR, Nelson EE, Kircanski K, Rappaport BI, Do QB, Leibenluft E, Pine DS, Jarcho JM. Social anxiety and age are associated with neural response to social evaluation during adolescence. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2020; 42:100768. [PMID: 32077442 PMCID: PMC7030986 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2020.100768] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2019] [Revised: 01/14/2020] [Accepted: 01/31/2020] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Adolescence is a sensitive period for the development of adaptive social behaviors and social anxiety, possibly due to aspects of brain development. However, research is needed to examine interactions among age, social anxiety, and social dynamics previously shown to influence neural responding. The current functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study examines brain function in 8-18 year-olds with varying levels of social anxiety. Interactions are examined among age, social anxiety, and two key task factors: valence and predictability of social interactions. Results demonstrate age, social anxiety severity, and each of the two key task-based factors interact to predict neural response in the caudate, middle and superior temporal gyri. In particular, among adolescents less-than 13 years of age, higher social anxiety predicted greater responding to unpredictable negative evaluations. However, in this same age group, the opposite pattern emerged during receipt of unpredictable positive evaluations, with less neural response in more anxious youth. Adolescents aged 13 and older overall showed less robust effects. We discuss these findings in terms of age- and anxiety-related differences in socioemotional processing.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- A R Smith
- Emotion and Development Branch, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD United States.
| | - E E Nelson
- Center for Biobehavioral Health, Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH United States
| | - K Kircanski
- Emotion and Development Branch, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD United States
| | - B I Rappaport
- Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri United States
| | - Q B Do
- Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania United States
| | - E Leibenluft
- Emotion and Development Branch, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD United States
| | - D S Pine
- Emotion and Development Branch, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD United States
| | - J M Jarcho
- Department of Psychology, Temple University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania United States
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Steinberg L, Icenogle G. Using Developmental Science to Distinguish Adolescents and Adults Under the Law. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2019. [DOI: 10.1146/annurev-devpsych-121318-085105] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
A developmental scientific perspective on drawing legal age boundaries begins with the premise that the age at which the rights and responsibilities of adulthood are conferred to minors must align with the psychological capacities and skills necessary to exercise good judgment in specific contexts. This article examines three aspects of development relevant to this analysis: cognitive capabilities, especially those that support reasoned and deliberative decision making; psychosocial capacities, especially those that facilitate self-regulation under conditions of social or emotional arousal; and neurobiological maturation in brain regions and systems that undergird these cognitive and psychosocial skills. We conclude that the maturation of the capacity to reason and deliberate systematically precedes, by as much as five years, the maturation of the ability to exercise self-regulation, especially in socially and emotionally arousing contexts. Legal age boundaries should distinguish between two very different decision-making contexts: those that allow for unhurried, logical reflection and those that do not.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Laurence Steinberg
- Department of Psychology, Temple University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19122, USA
| | - Grace Icenogle
- School of Social Ecology, University of California, Irvine, California 92697, USA
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
De Pascalis V, Scacchia P, Sommer K, Checcucci C. Psychopathy traits and reinforcement sensitivity theory: Prepulse inhibition and ERP responses. Biol Psychol 2019; 148:107771. [DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2019.107771] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2019] [Revised: 09/09/2019] [Accepted: 09/13/2019] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
|
9
|
Hwang S, Meffert H, VanTieghem MR, White SF, Sinclair S, Bookheimer SY, Blair J. Neurodevelopmental Changes in Social Reinforcement Processing: A Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study. CLINICAL PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY AND NEUROSCIENCE 2017; 15:369-381. [PMID: 29073749 PMCID: PMC5678476 DOI: 10.9758/cpn.2017.15.4.369] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2017] [Revised: 06/24/2017] [Accepted: 09/04/2017] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Objective In the current study we investigated neurodevelopmental changes in response to social and non-social reinforcement. Methods Fifty-three healthy participants including 16 early adolescents (age, 10-15 years), 16 late adolescents (age, 15-18 years), and 21 young adults (age, 21-25 years) completed a social/non-social reward learning task while undergoing functional magnetic resonance imaging. Participants responded to fractal image stimuli and received social or non-social reward/non-rewards according to their accuracy. ANOVAs were conducted on both the blood oxygen level dependent response data and the product of a context-dependent psychophysiological interaction (gPPI) analysis involving ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) and bilateral insula cortices as seed regions. Results Early adolescents showed significantly increased activation in the amygdala and anterior insula cortex in response to non-social monetary rewards relative to both social reward/non-reward and monetary non-rewards compared to late adolescents and young adults. In addition, early adolescents showed significantly more positive connectivity between the vmPFC/bilateral insula cortices seeds and other regions implicated in reinforcement processing (the amygdala, posterior cingulate cortex, insula cortex, and lentiform nucleus) in response to non-reward and especially social non-reward, compared to late adolescents and young adults. Conclusion It appears that early adolescence may be marked by: (i) a selective increase in responsiveness to non-social, relative to social, rewards; and (ii) enhanced, integrated functioning of reinforcement circuitry for non-reward, and in particular, with respect to posterior cingulate and insula cortices, for social non-reward.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Soonjo Hwang
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, USA
| | - Harma Meffert
- Center for Neurobehavioral Research, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE, USA
| | | | - Stuart F White
- Center for Neurobehavioral Research, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE, USA
| | - Stephen Sinclair
- Section on Affective Cognitive Neuroscience, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Susan Y Bookheimer
- Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - James Blair
- Center for Neurobehavioral Research, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE, USA
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Bunford N, Roberts J, Kennedy AE, Klumpp H. Neurofunctional correlates of behavioral inhibition system sensitivity during attentional control are modulated by perceptual load. Biol Psychol 2017; 127:10-17. [PMID: 28478139 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2017.04.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2016] [Revised: 03/01/2017] [Accepted: 04/28/2017] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Although the Behavioral Inhibition System (BIS) is associated with threat-sensitivity, little is known about its neurofunctional correlates during cognitive control over task-irrelevant threat distractors. Thirty non-clinical participants, who ranged in BIS sensitivity, completed an attentional control paradigm during fMRI. The paradigm varied in cognitive demand with low perceptual load comprising identical target letters and high perceptual load comprising a target letter in a mixed letter string; each superimposed on threatening and neutral face distractors. Whole-brain results indicated that individuals with higher, relative to lower BIS sensitivity, exhibited enhanced dorsolateral prefrontal cortex activation to angry (vs. neutral) and enhanced dorsal anterior cingulate cortex activation to fearful (vs. neutral) face distractors under low load whereas no differences in activation were observed under high load. These findings are consistent with literature indicating that the BIS is involved in conflict processing, including between cognitive and emotional or motivational goals.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Nora Bunford
- Mood and Anxiety Disorders Research Program (MADRP), Psychiatry, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States.
| | - Julia Roberts
- Mood and Anxiety Disorders Research Program (MADRP), Psychiatry, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Amy E Kennedy
- Mood and Anxiety Disorders Research Program (MADRP), Psychiatry, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Heide Klumpp
- Mood and Anxiety Disorders Research Program (MADRP), Psychiatry, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States; Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Reversal-learning deficits in childhood-onset bipolar disorder across the transition from childhood to young adulthood. J Affect Disord 2016; 203:46-54. [PMID: 27280962 PMCID: PMC4975956 DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2016.05.046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2015] [Revised: 04/25/2016] [Accepted: 05/22/2016] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Bipolar disorder (BD) is a severe mental illness that can have high costs for youths (<18 years old) and adults. Relative to healthy controls (HC), individuals with BD often show impaired attention, working memory, executive function, and cognitive flexibility (the ability to adapt to changing reward/punishment contingencies). In our study of youths and young adults with BD, we investigated 1) how cognitive flexibility varies developmentally in BD, and 2) whether it is independent of other executive function deficits associated with BD. METHODS We measured errors on a reversal-learning task, as well as spatial working memory and other executive function, among participants with BD (N=75) and HC (N=130), 7-27 years old. Regression analyses focused on the effects of diagnosis on reversal-learning errors, controlling for age, gender, IQ, spatial span, and executive function. Similar analyses examined non-reversal errors to rule out general task impairment. RESULTS Participants with BD, regardless of age, gender, or cognitive ability, showed more errors than HC on the response reversal stages of the cognitive flexibility task. However, participants with BD did not show more errors on non-reversal stages, even when controlling for other variables. LIMITATIONS Study limitations include the cross-sectional, rather than longitudinal, design; inability to measure non-linear age effects; and inclusion of medicated participants and those with psychiatric comorbidity. CONCLUSIONS Individuals with BD show a specific impairment in reversing a previously rewarded response, which persists across the transition from childhood to young adulthood. Tailored interventions targeting this deficit may be effective throughout this developmentally turbulent time.
Collapse
|
12
|
Urošević S, Luciana M, Jensen JB, Youngstrom EA, Thomas KM. Age associations with neural processing of reward anticipation in adolescents with bipolar disorders. NEUROIMAGE-CLINICAL 2016; 11:476-485. [PMID: 27114896 PMCID: PMC4832096 DOI: 10.1016/j.nicl.2016.03.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2015] [Revised: 02/04/2016] [Accepted: 03/17/2016] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Reward/behavioral approach system hypersensitivity is implicated in bipolar disorders (BD) and in normative development during adolescence. Pediatric onset of BD is associated with a more severe illness course. However, little is known about neural processing of rewards in adolescents with BD or developmental (i.e., age) associations with activation of these neural systems. The present study aims to address this knowledge gap. The present sample included 21 adolescents with BD and 26 healthy adolescents, ages 13 to 19. Participants completed a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) protocol using the Monetary Incentive Delay (MID) task. Behavioral performance was similar between groups. Group differences in BOLD activation during target anticipation and feedback anticipation periods of the task were examined using whole-brain analyses, as were group differences in age effects. During both target anticipation and feedback anticipation, adolescents with BD, compared to adolescents without psychopathology, exhibited decreased engagement of frontal regions involved in cognitive control (i.e., dorsolateral prefrontal cortex). Healthy adolescents exhibited age-related decreases, while adolescents with BD exhibited age-related increases, in activity of other cognitive control frontal areas (i.e., right inferior frontal gyrus), suggesting altered development in the BD group. Longitudinal research is needed to examine potentially abnormal development of cognitive control during reward pursuit in adolescent BD and whether early therapeutic interventions can prevent these potential deviations from normative development.
Collapse
Key Words
- ACC, anterior cingulate cortex
- ADHD, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder
- Adolescence
- BAS dysregulation
- BAS, behavioral approach system
- BD, bipolar disorders
- Bipolar disorder
- DLPFC, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex
- MID, monetary incentive delay task
- Nacc, nucleus accumbens
- OFC, orbitofrontal cortex
- PCC, posterior cingulate cortex
- Reward
- SUD, substance use disorders
- fMRI
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Snežana Urošević
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, United States; Center for Neurobehavioral Development, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, United States.
| | - Monica Luciana
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, United States; Center for Neurobehavioral Development, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, United States
| | - Jonathan B Jensen
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, United States
| | - Eric A Youngstrom
- Department of Psychology, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, United States
| | - Kathleen M Thomas
- Center for Neurobehavioral Development, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, United States; Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, United States
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Crone EA, van Duijvenvoorde ACK, Peper JS. Annual Research Review: Neural contributions to risk-taking in adolescence--developmental changes and individual differences. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 2016; 57:353-68. [PMID: 26889896 DOI: 10.1111/jcpp.12502] [Citation(s) in RCA: 102] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/17/2015] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Risk-taking, which involves voluntary choices for behaviors where outcomes remain uncertain, undergoes considerable developmental changes during childhood, adolescence, and early adulthood. In addition, risk-taking is thought to be a key element of many externalizing disorders, such as ADHD, delinquency, conduct disorder, and substance abuse. In this review, we will discuss the potential adaptive and nonadaptive properties of risk-taking in childhood and adolescence. FINDINGS We propose that the changes in brain architecture and function are a crucial element underlying these developmental trajectories. We first identify how subcortical and cortical interactions are important for understanding risk-taking behavior in adults. Next, we show how developmental changes in this network underlie changes in risk-taking behavior. Finally, we explore how these differences can be important for understanding externalizing behavioral disorders in childhood and adolescence. CONCLUSIONS We conclude that longitudinal studies are of crucial importance for understanding these developmental trajectories, and many of these studies are currently underway.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Eveline A Crone
- Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology, Institute of Psychology, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands.,Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Anna C K van Duijvenvoorde
- Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology, Institute of Psychology, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands.,Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Jiska S Peper
- Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology, Institute of Psychology, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands.,Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Shulman EP, Smith AR, Silva K, Icenogle G, Duell N, Chein J, Steinberg L. The dual systems model: Review, reappraisal, and reaffirmation. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2016; 17:103-17. [PMID: 26774291 PMCID: PMC6990093 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2015.12.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 424] [Impact Index Per Article: 53.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2015] [Revised: 07/17/2015] [Accepted: 12/19/2015] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
According to the dual systems perspective, risk taking peaks during adolescence because activation of an early-maturing socioemotional-incentive processing system amplifies adolescents' affinity for exciting, pleasurable, and novel activities at a time when a still immature cognitive control system is not yet strong enough to consistently restrain potentially hazardous impulses. We review evidence from both the psychological and neuroimaging literatures that has emerged since 2008, when this perspective was originally articulated. Although there are occasional exceptions to the general trends, studies show that, as predicted, psychological and neural manifestations of reward sensitivity increase between childhood and adolescence, peak sometime during the late teen years, and decline thereafter, whereas psychological and neural reflections of better cognitive control increase gradually and linearly throughout adolescence and into the early 20s. While some forms of real-world risky behavior peak at a later age than predicted, this likely reflects differential opportunities for risk-taking in late adolescence and young adulthood, rather than neurobiological differences that make this age group more reckless. Although it is admittedly an oversimplification, as a heuristic device, the dual systems model provides a far more accurate account of adolescent risk taking than prior models that have attributed adolescent recklessness to cognitive deficiencies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth P Shulman
- Brock University, Psychology Department, 1812 Sir Isaac Brock Way, St. Catharines, ON L2S 3A1, Canada.
| | - Ashley R Smith
- Temple University, Department of Psychology, 1701 N. 13th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19122, USA.
| | - Karol Silva
- Temple University, Department of Psychology, 1701 N. 13th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19122, USA.
| | - Grace Icenogle
- Temple University, Department of Psychology, 1701 N. 13th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19122, USA.
| | - Natasha Duell
- Temple University, Department of Psychology, 1701 N. 13th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19122, USA.
| | - Jason Chein
- Temple University, Department of Psychology, 1701 N. 13th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19122, USA.
| | - Laurence Steinberg
- Temple University, Department of Psychology, 1701 N. 13th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19122, USA; King Abdulaziz University, Abdullah Sulayman, Jeddah 22254, Saudi Arabia.
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Silverman MH, Jedd K, Luciana M. Neural networks involved in adolescent reward processing: An activation likelihood estimation meta-analysis of functional neuroimaging studies. Neuroimage 2015; 122:427-39. [PMID: 26254587 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2015.07.083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 188] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2015] [Revised: 07/18/2015] [Accepted: 07/29/2015] [Indexed: 10/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Behavioral responses to, and the neural processing of, rewards change dramatically during adolescence and may contribute to observed increases in risk-taking during this developmental period. Functional MRI (fMRI) studies suggest differences between adolescents and adults in neural activation during reward processing, but findings are contradictory, and effects have been found in non-predicted directions. The current study uses an activation likelihood estimation (ALE) approach for quantitative meta-analysis of functional neuroimaging studies to: (1) confirm the network of brain regions involved in adolescents' reward processing, (2) identify regions involved in specific stages (anticipation, outcome) and valence (positive, negative) of reward processing, and (3) identify differences in activation likelihood between adolescent and adult reward-related brain activation. Results reveal a subcortical network of brain regions involved in adolescent reward processing similar to that found in adults with major hubs including the ventral and dorsal striatum, insula, and posterior cingulate cortex (PCC). Contrast analyses find that adolescents exhibit greater likelihood of activation in the insula while processing anticipation relative to outcome and greater likelihood of activation in the putamen and amygdala during outcome relative to anticipation. While processing positive compared to negative valence, adolescents show increased likelihood for activation in the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) and ventral striatum. Contrasting adolescent reward processing with the existing ALE of adult reward processing reveals increased likelihood for activation in limbic, frontolimbic, and striatal regions in adolescents compared with adults. Unlike adolescents, adults also activate executive control regions of the frontal and parietal lobes. These findings support hypothesized elevations in motivated activity during adolescence.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Merav H Silverman
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, 75 East River Parkway, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA.
| | - Kelly Jedd
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, 51 East River Parkway, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - Monica Luciana
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, 75 East River Parkway, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA; Center for Neurobehavioral Development, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, 717 Delaware, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Wolf C, Mohr H, Diekhof EK, Vieker H, Goya-Maldonado R, Trost S, Krämer B, Keil M, Binder EB, Gruber O. CREB1 Genotype Modulates Adaptive Reward-Based Decisions in Humans. Cereb Cortex 2015; 26:2970-81. [PMID: 26045569 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhv104] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Cyclic AMP response element-binding protein (CREB) contributes to adaptation of mesocorticolimbic networks by modulating activity-regulated transcription and plasticity in neurons. Activity or expression changes of CREB in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) and orbital frontal cortex (OFC) interact with behavioral changes during reward-motivated learning. However, these findings from animal models have not been evaluated in humans. We tested whether CREB1 genotypes affect reward-motivated decisions and related brain activation, using BOLD fMRI in 224 young and healthy participants. More specifically, participants needed to adapt their decision to either pursue or resist immediate rewards to optimize the reward outcome. We found significant CREB1 genotype effects on choices to pursue increases of the reward outcome and on BOLD signal in the NAc, OFC, insula cortex, cingulate gyrus, hippocampus, amygdala, and precuneus during these decisions in comparison with those decisions avoiding total reward loss. Our results suggest that CREB1 genotype effects in these regions could contribute to individual differences in reward- and associative memory-based decision-making.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Wolf
- Center for Translational Research in Systems Neuroscience and Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Georg-August-University Göttingen, Göttingen 37075, Germany Laboratory of Behavioral Neuroscience, National Institute of Aging, Baltimore, MD 21224-6825, USA
| | - Holger Mohr
- Center for Translational Research in Systems Neuroscience and Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Georg-August-University Göttingen, Göttingen 37075, Germany Department of General Psychology, Technical University Dresden, Dresden 01069, Germany
| | - Esther K Diekhof
- Center for Translational Research in Systems Neuroscience and Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Georg-August-University Göttingen, Göttingen 37075, Germany Grindel Biocenter and Zoological Museum, Institute for Humanbiology, University Hamburg, Hamburg 20146, Germany
| | - Henning Vieker
- Center for Translational Research in Systems Neuroscience and Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Georg-August-University Göttingen, Göttingen 37075, Germany Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg 20246, Germany
| | - Roberto Goya-Maldonado
- Center for Translational Research in Systems Neuroscience and Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Georg-August-University Göttingen, Göttingen 37075, Germany
| | - Sarah Trost
- Center for Translational Research in Systems Neuroscience and Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Georg-August-University Göttingen, Göttingen 37075, Germany
| | - Bernd Krämer
- Center for Translational Research in Systems Neuroscience and Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Georg-August-University Göttingen, Göttingen 37075, Germany
| | - Maria Keil
- Center for Translational Research in Systems Neuroscience and Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Georg-August-University Göttingen, Göttingen 37075, Germany
| | | | - Oliver Gruber
- Center for Translational Research in Systems Neuroscience and Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Georg-August-University Göttingen, Göttingen 37075, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Iowa Gambling Task Performance and Executive Function Predict Low-income Urban Preadolescents' Risky Behaviors. PERSONALITY AND INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES 2015; 79:1-6. [PMID: 26412918 DOI: 10.1016/j.paid.2015.01.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
This study examines preadolescents' reports of risk-taking as predicted by two different, but related inhibitory control systems involving sensitivity to reward and loss on the one hand, and higher order processing in the context of cognitive conflict, known as executive functioning (EF), on the other. Importantly, this study examines these processes with a sample of inner-city, low-income preadolescents and as such examines the ways in which these processes may be related to risky behaviors as a function of children's levels of both concurrent and chronic exposure to household poverty. As part of a larger longitudinal study, 382 children (ages 9 -11) provided a self-report of risky behaviors and participated in the Iowa Gambling task, assessing bias for infrequent loss (preference for infrequent, high magnitude versus frequent, low magnitude loss) and the Hearts and Flowers task assessing executive functioning. Results demonstrated that a higher bias for infrequent loss was associated with higher risky behaviors for children who demonstrated lower EF. Furthermore, bias for infrequent loss was most strongly associated with higher risk-taking for children facing highest levels of poverty. Implications for early identification and prevention of risk-taking in inner-city preadolescents are discussed.
Collapse
|
18
|
Smith AR, Steinberg L, Strang N, Chein J. Age differences in the impact of peers on adolescents' and adults' neural response to reward. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2015; 11:75-82. [PMID: 25280778 PMCID: PMC4324356 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2014.08.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 77] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2014] [Revised: 07/14/2014] [Accepted: 08/21/2014] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Prior research suggests that increased adolescent risk-taking in the presence of peers may be linked to the influence of peers on the valuation and processing of rewards during decision-making. The current study explores this idea by examining how peer observation impacts the processing of rewards when such processing is isolated from other facets of risky decision-making (e.g. risk-perception and preference, inhibitory processing, etc.). In an fMRI paradigm, a sample of adolescents (ages 14-19) and adults (ages 25-35) completed a modified High/Low Card Guessing Task that included rewarded and un-rewarded trials. Social context was manipulated by having participants complete the task both alone and while being observed by two, same-age, same-sex peers. Results indicated an interaction of age and social context on the activation of reward circuitry during the receipt of reward; when observed by peers adolescents exhibited greater ventral striatal activation than adults, but no age-related differences were evinced when the task was completed alone. These findings suggest that, during adolescence, peers influence recruitment of reward-related regions even when they are engaged outside of the context of risk-taking. Implications for engagement in prosocial, as well as risky, behaviors during adolescence are discussed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ashley R Smith
- Temple University, Department of Psychology, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Laurence Steinberg
- Temple University, Department of Psychology, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Nicole Strang
- Temple University, Department of Psychology, Philadelphia, PA, United States; Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Jason Chein
- Temple University, Department of Psychology, Philadelphia, PA, United States.
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
Kelm MK, Boettiger CA. Age moderates the effect of acute dopamine depletion on passive avoidance learning. Pharmacol Biochem Behav 2015; 131:57-63. [PMID: 25636601 DOI: 10.1016/j.pbb.2015.01.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2014] [Revised: 01/16/2015] [Accepted: 01/20/2015] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
Despite extensive links between reinforcement-based learning and dopamine (DA), studies to date have not found consistent effects of acute DA reduction on reinforcement learning in both men and women. Here, we tested the effects of reducing DA on reward- and punishment-based learning using the deterministic passive avoidance learning (PAL) task. We tested 16 (5 female) adults (ages 22-40) in a randomized, cross-over design to determine whether reducing global DA by administering an amino acid beverage deficient in the DA precursors, phenylalanine and tyrosine (P/T[-]), would affect PAL task performance. We found that P/T[-] beverage effects on PAL performance were modulated by age. Specifically, we found that P/T depletion significantly improved learning from punishment with increasing participant age. Participants committed 1.49 fewer passive avoidance errors per additional year of age (95% CI, -0.71 - -2.27, r=-0.74, p=0.001). Moreover, P/T depletion improved learning from punishment in adults (ages 26-40) while it impaired learning from punishment in emerging adults (ages 22-25). We observed similar, but non-significant trends in learning from reward. While there was no overall effect of P/T-depletion on reaction time (RT), there was a relationship between the effect of P/T depletion on PAL performance and RT; those who responded more slowly on the P/T[-] beverage also made more errors on the P/T[-] beverage. When P/T-depletion slowed RT after a correct response, there was a worsening of PAL task performance; there was no similar relationship for the RT after an incorrect response and PAL task performance. Moreover, among emerging adults, changes in mood on the P/T[-] beverage negatively correlated with learning from reward on the P/T[-] beverage. Together, we found that both reward- and punishment-based learning are sensitive to central catecholamine levels, and that these effects of acute DA reduction vary with age.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mary Katherine Kelm
- Department of Psychology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, United States; Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, United States
| | - Charlotte Ann Boettiger
- Department of Psychology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, United States; Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, United States; Biomedical Research Imaging Center, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, United States; Neurobiology Curriculum, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, United States.
| |
Collapse
|
20
|
Machado S, Arias-Carrión O, Sampaio I, Bittencourt J, Velasques B, Teixeira S, Nardi AE, Piedade R, Ribeiro P. Source Imaging of P300 Visual Evoked Potentials and Cognitive Functions in Healthy Subjects. Clin EEG Neurosci 2014; 45:262-268. [PMID: 24615930 DOI: 10.1177/1550059413514389] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2013] [Accepted: 11/02/2013] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
The P300 event-related potential (EPR) is regarded as a neurophysiological indicator of cognitive processing of a stimulus. However, it is not known whether the P300 is a unitary component recorded on the scalp as a result of the activity of a specific intracerebral structure, or if it represents the sum of underlying components that may reflect the activation of broadly distributed intracerebral structures. The objective of the present experiment was to investigate possible correlations among the source(s) involved in the generation of the P300 and their possible neurocognitive function. The visual-evoked potential (VEP) was elicited by the oddball paradigm and analyzed after employment of sLORETA (standardized low-resolution electromagnetic tomography). The window of the P300 wave encompasses the period during which the response to the target and nontarget condition differs significantly (≈375 ms to ≈465 ms, with a peak at ≈422.5 ms). The results showed sequential and what appeared to be logical activation patterns of specific structures (specific for the processing of the stimulus used here) after presentation of the target stimulus. The peak of the P300 wave represented activation of the parahippocampal gyrus, which is responsible for upgrading memory in response to a target stimulus.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sergio Machado
- Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil .,Salgado de Oliveira University, Niterói, Brazil.,Federal University of Uberlândia, Uberlândia, Brazil.,Central University, Santiago, Chile
| | | | - Isabel Sampaio
- Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Juliana Bittencourt
- Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.,Institute of Applied Neuroscience, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.,Veiga de Almeida University, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Bruna Velasques
- Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.,National Institute of Traumatology and Orthopedics, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.,Institute of Applied Neuroscience, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Silmar Teixeira
- Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.,Institute of Applied Neuroscience, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.,Veiga de Almeida University, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.,State University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Antonio Egídio Nardi
- Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.,National Institute of Translational Medicine, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Roberto Piedade
- Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Pedro Ribeiro
- Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.,Institute of Applied Neuroscience, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| |
Collapse
|
21
|
Cognitive flexibility in adolescence: neural and behavioral mechanisms of reward prediction error processing in adaptive decision making during development. Neuroimage 2014; 104:347-54. [PMID: 25234119 PMCID: PMC4330550 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2014.09.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 101] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2014] [Revised: 09/05/2014] [Accepted: 09/06/2014] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Adolescence is associated with quickly changing environmental demands which require excellent adaptive skills and high cognitive flexibility. Feedback-guided adaptive learning and cognitive flexibility are driven by reward prediction error (RPE) signals, which indicate the accuracy of expectations and can be estimated using computational models. Despite the importance of cognitive flexibility during adolescence, only little is known about how RPE processing in cognitive flexibility deviates between adolescence and adulthood. In this study, we investigated the developmental aspects of cognitive flexibility by means of computational models and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). We compared the neural and behavioral correlates of cognitive flexibility in healthy adolescents (12–16 years) to adults performing a probabilistic reversal learning task. Using a modified risk-sensitive reinforcement learning model, we found that adolescents learned faster from negative RPEs than adults. The fMRI analysis revealed that within the RPE network, the adolescents had a significantly altered RPE-response in the anterior insula. This effect seemed to be mainly driven by increased responses to negative prediction errors. In summary, our findings indicate that decision making in adolescence goes beyond merely increased reward-seeking behavior and provides a developmental perspective to the behavioral and neural mechanisms underlying cognitive flexibility in the context of reinforcement learning. Adolescents and adults show differences in processing RPEs. Adolescents learn faster from negative prediction errors. The anterior insula activation may cause altered sensitivity to RPEs.
Collapse
|
22
|
Christakou A. Present simple and continuous: emergence of self-regulation and contextual sophistication in adolescent decision-making. Neuropsychologia 2014; 65:302-12. [PMID: 25220166 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2014.09.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2014] [Revised: 08/11/2014] [Accepted: 09/02/2014] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Sophisticated, intentional decision-making is a hallmark of mature, self-aware behaviour. Although neural, psychological, interpersonal, and socioeconomic elements that contribute to such adaptive, foresighted behaviour mature and/or change throughout the life-span, here we concentrate on relevant maturational processes that take place during adolescence, a period of disproportionate developmental opportunity and risk. A brief, eclectic overview is presented of recent evidence, new challenges, and current thinking on the fundamental mechanisms that mature throughout adolescence to support adaptive, self-controlled decision-making. This is followed by a proposal for the putative contribution of frontostriatal mechanisms to the moment-to-moment assembly of evaluative heuristics that mediate increased decision-making sophistication, promoting the maturation of self-regulated behaviour through adolescence and young adulthood.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Anastasia Christakou
- Centre for Integrative Neuroscience and Neurodynamics, School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, RG6 6AL, United Kingdom.
| |
Collapse
|
23
|
Verdejo-García A, Verdejo-Román J, Rio-Valle JS, Lacomba JA, Lagos FM, Soriano-Mas C. Dysfunctional involvement of emotion and reward brain regions on social decision making in excess weight adolescents. Hum Brain Mapp 2014; 36:226-37. [PMID: 25168709 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.22625] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2014] [Revised: 07/27/2014] [Accepted: 08/21/2014] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Obese adolescents suffer negative social experiences, but no studies have examined whether obesity is associated with dysfunction of the social brain or whether social brain abnormalities relate to disadvantageous traits and social decisions. We aimed at mapping functional activation differences in the brain circuitry of social decision making in adolescents with excess versus normal weight, and at examining whether these separate patterns correlate with reward/punishment sensitivity, disordered eating features, and behavioral decisions. In this fMRI study, 80 adolescents aged 12 to 18 years old were classified in two groups based on age adjusted body mass index (BMI) percentiles: normal weight (n = 44, BMI percentiles 5th-84th) and excess weight (n = 36, BMI percentile ≥ 85th). Participants were scanned while performing a social decision-making task (ultimatum game) in which they chose to "accept" or "reject" offers to split monetary stakes made by another peer. Offers varied in fairness (Fair vs. Unfair) but in all cases "accepting" meant both players win the money, whereas "rejecting" meant both lose it. We showed that adolescents with excess weight compared to controls display significantly decreased activation of anterior insula, anterior cingulate, and midbrain during decisions about Unfair versus Fair offers. Moreover, excess weight subjects show lower sensitivity to reward and more maturity fears, which correlate with insula activation. Indeed, blunted insula activation accounted for the relationship between maturity fears and acceptance of unfair offers. Excess weight adolescents have diminished activation of brain regions essential for affective tracking of social decision making, which accounts for the association between maturity fears and social decisions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Antonio Verdejo-García
- School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University, 3800 Wellington Rd, Melbourne (Australia); Department of Clinical Psychology & Institute of Neuroscience F. Oloriz, Universidad de Granada, Universidad de Granada. Campus de Cartuja S/N, 18071 Granada, Spain
| | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
24
|
Javadi AH, Schmidt DHK, Smolka MN. Adolescents adapt more slowly than adults to varying reward contingencies. J Cogn Neurosci 2014; 26:2670-2681. [PMID: 24960048 DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_00677] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
It has been suggested that adolescents process rewards differently from adults, both cognitively and affectively. In an fMRI study we recorded brain BOLD activity of adolescents (age range = 14-15 years) and adults (age range = 20-39 years) to investigate the developmental changes in reward processing and decision-making. In a probabilistic reversal learning task, adolescents and adults adapted to changes in reward contingencies. We used a reinforcement learning model with an adaptive learning rate for each trial to model the adolescents' and adults' behavior. Results showed that adolescents possessed a shallower slope in the sigmoid curve governing the relation between expected value (the value of the expected feedback, +1 and -1 representing rewarding and punishing feedback, respectively) and probability of stay (selecting the same option as in the previous trial). Trial-by-trial change in expected values after being correct or wrong was significantly different between adolescents and adults. These values were closer to certainty for adults. Additionally, absolute value of model-derived prediction error for adolescents was significantly higher after a correct response but a punishing feedback. At the neural level, BOLD correlates of learning rate, expected value, and prediction error did not significantly differ between adolescents and adults. Nor did we see group differences in the prediction error-related BOLD signal for different trial types. Our results indicate that adults seem to behaviorally integrate punishing feedback better than adolescents in their estimation of the current state of the contingencies. On the basis of these results, we argue that adolescents made decisions with less certainty when compared with adults and speculate that adolescents acquired a less accurate knowledge of their current state, that is, of being correct or wrong.
Collapse
|
25
|
Smith AR, Steinberg L, Chein J. The role of the anterior insula in adolescent decision making. Dev Neurosci 2014; 36:196-209. [PMID: 24853135 PMCID: PMC5544351 DOI: 10.1159/000358918] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2013] [Accepted: 01/21/2014] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Much recent research on adolescent decision making has sought to characterize the neurobiological mechanisms that underlie the proclivity of adolescents to engage in risky behavior. One class of influential neurodevelopmental models focuses on the asynchronous development of neural systems, particularly those responsible for self-regulation and reward seeking. While this work has largely focused on the development of prefrontal (self-regulation) and striatal (reward processing) circuitry, the present article explores the significance of a different region, the anterior insular cortex (AIC), in adolescent decision making. Although the AIC is known for its role as a cognitive-emotional hub, and is included in some models of adult self-regulation and reward seeking, the importance of the AIC and its maturation in adolescent risk taking has not been extensively explored. In this article we discuss evidence on AIC development, and consider how age-related differences in AIC engagement may contribute to heightened risk taking during adolescence. Based on this review, we propose a model in which the engagement of adolescents in risk taking may be linked in part to the maturation of the AIC and its connectivity to the broader brain networks in which it participates.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ashley R Smith
- Department of Psychology, Temple University, Philadelphia, Pa., USA
| | | | | |
Collapse
|
26
|
Longitudinal study of striatal activation to reward and loss anticipation from mid-adolescence into late adolescence/early adulthood. Brain Cogn 2014; 89:51-60. [PMID: 24485273 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandc.2013.12.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2013] [Revised: 12/05/2013] [Accepted: 12/12/2013] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Adolescent risk-taking behavior has been associated with age-related changes in striatal activation to incentives. Previous cross-sectional studies have shown both increased and decreased striatal activation to incentives for adolescents compared to adults. The monetary incentive delay (MID) task, designed to assess functional brain activation in anticipation of reward, has been used extensively to examine striatal activation in both adult and adolescent populations. The current study used this task with a longitudinal approach across mid-adolescence and late adolescence/early adulthood. Twenty-two participants (13 male) were studied using the MID task at two time-points, once in mid-adolescence (mean age=16.11; SD=1.44) and a second time in late adolescence/early adulthood (mean age=20.14; SD=.67). Results revealed greater striatal activation with increased age in high- compared to low-incentive contexts (incentive magnitude), for gain as well as for loss trials (incentive valence). Results extend cross-sectional findings and show reduced striatal engagement in adolescence compared to adulthood during preparation for action in an incentive context.
Collapse
|
27
|
Benningfield MM, Blackford JU, Ellsworth ME, Samanez-Larkin GR, Martin PR, Cowan RL, Zald DH. Caudate responses to reward anticipation associated with delay discounting behavior in healthy youth. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2013; 7:43-52. [PMID: 24309299 PMCID: PMC3932556 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2013.10.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2013] [Revised: 10/29/2013] [Accepted: 10/30/2013] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Greater discounting of future rewards may be a marker for vulnerability for substance abuse. We tested for an association between discounting and brain responses to reward in healthy youth. Left ventromedial caudate activation during anticipation of potential reward was associated with the willingness to delay gratification.
Background Choices requiring delay of gratification made during adolescence can have significant impact on life trajectory. Willingness to delay gratification can be measured using delay discounting tasks that require a choice between a smaller immediate reward and a larger delayed reward. Individual differences in the subjective value of delayed rewards are associated with risk for development of psychopathology including substance abuse. The neurobiological underpinnings related to these individual differences early in life are not fully understood. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we tested the hypothesis that individual differences in delay discounting behavior in healthy youth are related to differences in responsiveness to potential reward. Method Nineteen 10–14 year-olds performed a monetary incentive delay task to assess neural sensitivity to potential reward and a questionnaire to measure discounting of future monetary rewards. Results Left ventromedial caudate activation during anticipation of potential reward was negatively correlated with delay discounting behavior. There were no regions where brain responses during notification of reward outcome were associated with discounting behavior. Conclusions Brain activation during anticipation of potential reward may serve as a marker for individual differences in ability or willingness to delay gratification in healthy youth.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Margaret M Benningfield
- Department of Psychiatry, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, 1601 23rd Avenue South, Nashville, TN 37212, United States; Department of Pediatrics, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, 2200 Children's Way, Nashville, TN, 37232, United States.
| | - Jennifer U Blackford
- Department of Psychiatry, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, 1601 23rd Avenue South, Nashville, TN 37212, United States; Department of Psychology, Vanderbilt University, 2301 Vanderbilt Place, PMB 407817, Nashville, TN 37240, United States.
| | - Melissa E Ellsworth
- Department of Psychiatry, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, 1601 23rd Avenue South, Nashville, TN 37212, United States.
| | | | - Peter R Martin
- Department of Psychiatry, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, 1601 23rd Avenue South, Nashville, TN 37212, United States; Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, 215 Light Hall, Nashville, TN 37232, United States.
| | - Ronald L Cowan
- Department of Psychiatry, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, 1601 23rd Avenue South, Nashville, TN 37212, United States; Department of Psychology, Vanderbilt University, 2301 Vanderbilt Place, PMB 407817, Nashville, TN 37240, United States; Department of Radiology and Radiological Sciences, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, 1161 Medical Center Drive, Medical Center North, Suite CCC-1100, Nashville, TN 37232, United States.
| | - David H Zald
- Department of Psychiatry, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, 1601 23rd Avenue South, Nashville, TN 37212, United States; Department of Psychology, Vanderbilt University, 2301 Vanderbilt Place, PMB 407817, Nashville, TN 37240, United States.
| |
Collapse
|
28
|
Costumero V, Barrós-Loscertales A, Bustamante JC, Ventura-Campos N, Fuentes P, Rosell-Negre P, Ávila C. Reward sensitivity is associated with brain activity during erotic stimulus processing. PLoS One 2013; 8:e66940. [PMID: 23840558 PMCID: PMC3695981 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0066940] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2012] [Accepted: 05/13/2013] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
The behavioral approach system (BAS) from Gray’s reinforcement sensitivity theory is a neurobehavioral system involved in the processing of rewarding stimuli that has been related to dopaminergic brain areas. Gray’s theory hypothesizes that the functioning of reward brain areas is modulated by BAS-related traits. To test this hypothesis, we performed an fMRI study where participants viewed erotic and neutral pictures, and cues that predicted their appearance. Forty-five heterosexual men completed the Sensitivity to Reward scale (from the Sensitivity to Punishment and Sensitivity to Reward Questionnaire) to measure BAS-related traits. Results showed that Sensitivity to Reward scores correlated positively with brain activity during reactivity to erotic pictures in the left orbitofrontal cortex, left insula, and right ventral striatum. These results demonstrated a relationship between the BAS and reward sensitivity during the processing of erotic stimuli, filling the gap of previous reports that identified the dopaminergic system as a neural substrate for the BAS during the processing of other rewarding stimuli such as money and food.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Victor Costumero
- Departamento de Psicología Básica, Clínica y Psicobiologia, Universitat Jaume I, Castellón, Spain.
| | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
29
|
Richards JM, Plate RC, Ernst M. A systematic review of fMRI reward paradigms used in studies of adolescents vs. adults: the impact of task design and implications for understanding neurodevelopment. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2013; 37:976-91. [PMID: 23518270 PMCID: PMC3809756 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2013.03.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 135] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2012] [Revised: 03/05/2013] [Accepted: 03/11/2013] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
The neural systems underlying reward-related behaviors across development have recently generated a great amount of interest. Yet, the neurodevelopmental literature on reward processing is marked by inconsistencies due to the heterogeneity of the reward paradigms used, the complexity of the behaviors being studied, and the developing brain itself as a moving target. The present review will examine task design as one source of variability across findings by compiling this literature along three dimensions: (1) task structures, (2) cognitive processes, and (3) neural systems. We start with the presentation of a heuristic neural systems model, the Triadic Model, as a way to provide a theoretical framework for the neuroscience research on motivated behaviors. We then discuss the principles guiding reward task development. Finally, we review the extant developmental neuroimaging literature on reward-related processing, organized by reward task type. We hope that this approach will help to clarify the literature on the functional neurodevelopment of reward-related neural systems, and to identify the role of the experimental parameters that significantly influence these findings.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jessica M. Richards
- Department of Psychology, University of Maryland College Park, 2103R Cole Field House, University of Maryland College Park, College Park, MD 20741, USA
| | - Rista C. Plate
- University of Wisconsin-Madison, Waisman Center, Room 387, Madison, WI 53705
| | - Monique Ernst
- National Institute of Mental Health, NIMH-Building 15-K, Room 110, MSC-2670, Bethesda, MD 20817-2670, USA
| |
Collapse
|
30
|
Vaidya JG, Knutson B, O'Leary DS, Block RI, Magnotta V. Neural sensitivity to absolute and relative anticipated reward in adolescents. PLoS One 2013; 8:e58708. [PMID: 23544046 PMCID: PMC3609767 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0058708] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2012] [Accepted: 02/08/2013] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Adolescence is associated with a dramatic increase in risky and impulsive behaviors that have been attributed to developmental differences in neural processing of rewards. In the present study, we sought to identify age differences in anticipation of absolute and relative rewards. To do so, we modified a commonly used monetary incentive delay (MID) task in order to examine brain activity to relative anticipated reward value (neural sensitivity to the value of a reward as a function of other available rewards). This design also made it possible to examine developmental differences in brain activation to absolute anticipated reward magnitude (the degree to which neural activity increases with increasing reward magnitude). While undergoing fMRI, 18 adolescents and 18 adult participants were presented with cues associated with different reward magnitudes. After the cue, participants responded to a target to win money on that trial. Presentation of cues was blocked such that two reward cues associated with $.20, $1.00, or $5.00 were in play on a given block. Thus, the relative value of the $1.00 reward varied depending on whether it was paired with a smaller or larger reward. Reflecting age differences in neural responses to relative anticipated reward (i.e., reference dependent processing), adults, but not adolescents, demonstrated greater activity to a $1 reward when it was the larger of the two available rewards. Adults also demonstrated a more linear increase in ventral striatal activity as a function of increasing absolute reward magnitude compared to adolescents. Additionally, reduced ventral striatal sensitivity to absolute anticipated reward (i.e., the difference in activity to medium versus small rewards) correlated with higher levels of trait Impulsivity. Thus, ventral striatal activity in anticipation of absolute and relative rewards develops with age. Absolute reward processing is also linked to individual differences in Impulsivity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jatin G Vaidya
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, Iowa, United States of America.
| | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
31
|
CID: a valid incentive delay paradigm for children. J Neural Transm (Vienna) 2013; 120:1259-70. [PMID: 23338669 DOI: 10.1007/s00702-012-0962-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2012] [Accepted: 12/14/2012] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
Despite several modifications and the wide use of the monetary incentive delay paradigm (MID; Knutson et al. in J Neurosci 21(16):RC159, 2001a) for assessing reward processing, evidence concerning its application in children is scarce. A first child-friendly MID modification has been introduced by Gotlib et al. (Arch Gen Psychiatry 67(4): 380-387, 2010); however, comparability in the results of different tasks and validity across different age groups remains unclear. We investigated the validity of a newly modified MID task for children (CID) using functional magnetic resonance imaging. The CID comprises the integration of a more age appropriate feedback phase. We focused on reward anticipation and their neural correlates. Twenty healthy young adults completed the MID and the CID. Additionally, 10 healthy children completed the CID. As expected, both paradigms elicited significant ventral and dorsal striatal activity in young adults during reward anticipation. No differential effects of the tasks on reaction times, accuracy rates or on the total amount of gain were observed. Furthermore, the CID elicited significant ventral striatal activity in healthy children. In conclusion, these findings demonstrate evidence for the validity of the CID paradigm. The CID can be recommended for the application in future studies on reward processing in children, adolescents, and in adults.
Collapse
|