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Positive cognitive reappraisal is beneficial for women’s but not for men’s IGT decision-making. MOTIVATION AND EMOTION 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s11031-022-09927-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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Garrido-Chaves R, Perez-Alarcón M, Perez V, Hidalgo V, Pulopulos MM, Salvador A. FRN and P3 during the Iowa gambling task: The importance of gender. Psychophysiology 2020; 58:e13734. [PMID: 33289135 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.13734] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2020] [Revised: 10/30/2020] [Accepted: 11/02/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Previous research has shown gender-related psychobiological differences in risky and competitive strategies that affect win and loss outcomes. In addition, some studies have found differences in the decision-making process, with women taking longer to reach the same performance as men. However, the underlying neural mechanisms remain unclear. The present study aimed to investigate gender differences in behavioral performance and neural correlates during a decision-making task, the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT). Forty healthy young adults (23 men and 17 women) performed the IGT while the feedback-related negativity (FRN) and P3 were recorded as neural correlates of feedback processing. No gender differences were observed in the behavioral performance on the IGT after 100 and 150 trials, or in the P3 component. In women, but not in men, the FRN component showed a greater amplitude for losses than for wins. There were no significant gender-related differences in behavioral performance, and men and women revealed a similar learning process on the IGT. At the neural level, no direct differences between men and women were observed in the feedback processing stage for the FRN or P3. However, our results indicate that women showed greater sensitivity to losses than to wins during the decision-making task, as reflected in the FRN component.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruth Garrido-Chaves
- Laboratory of Social Cognitive Neuroscience, IDOCAL, Department of Psychobiology, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain
| | - Mario Perez-Alarcón
- Laboratory of Social Cognitive Neuroscience, IDOCAL, Department of Psychobiology, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain
| | - Vanesa Perez
- Laboratory of Social Cognitive Neuroscience, IDOCAL, Department of Psychobiology, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain
| | - Vanesa Hidalgo
- Laboratory of Social Cognitive Neuroscience, IDOCAL, Department of Psychobiology, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain
- Department of Psychology and Sociology, Area of Psychobiology, University of Zaragoza, IIS Aragón, Teruel, Spain
| | - Matias M Pulopulos
- Laboratory of Social Cognitive Neuroscience, IDOCAL, Department of Psychobiology, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain
- Department of Psychology and Sociology, Area of Psychobiology, University of Zaragoza, IIS Aragón, Teruel, Spain
- Department of Experimental Clinical and Health Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Alicia Salvador
- Laboratory of Social Cognitive Neuroscience, IDOCAL, Department of Psychobiology, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain
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Martínez-García C, Parra-Martínez C, Parra ÁT, Martínez-García TE, Alameda-Bailén JR. Iowa Gambling Task and Distortion in Perception of Body Image Among Adolescent Women With Eating Disorders. Front Psychol 2020; 11:2223. [PMID: 32982892 PMCID: PMC7488598 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.02223] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2020] [Accepted: 08/10/2020] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The Iowa gambling task (IGT) is an instrument for the neuropsychological evaluation of cognitive and emotional decision making (DM) processes that was created to test the somatic marker hypothesis (SMH) described by Damasio in 1994. It was initially applied to patients with frontal lobe lesions due to its association with executive functions but was subsequently used on patients with a variety of disorders. Although the DM process is inherently perceptual, few studies have applied the IGT to examine DM processes in patients with eating disorders (EDs), and even fewer have associated the IGT to the perceptual distortion of body image (PDBI) in this population. People diagnosed with ED exhibit heightened control over their somatic responses-for example, they can delay digestion for hours-and DM may be affected in this condition. This study compares the performance of two samples of adolescent women-hospitalized patients with ED, and healthy controls with similar demographic characteristics-on the IGT using body image as a possible factor in the SMH. Seventy-four women with a mean age of 14.97 years (SD = 2.347) participated. To analyze their body self-image, we used the figure-rating scale and compared the results with their body mass index (BMI). Correlations between indices of the IGT and distortion in body image were then explored. The results revealed significant differences between the groups in terms of evolving performance on the partial IGT. Patients with ED performed worse than their healthy counterparts in the last 40 trials and exhibited greater distortions in their body image, especially in terms of overestimation. Indices of these distortions were negatively correlated with the total IGT. These results are compatible with the SMH because they suggest that patients with ED evinced blindness with regard to the future, as described by their authors. In addition, a negative correlation was found between the IGT and PDBI, showing that a more distorted body image was associated with lower IGT, that is, more disadvantageous or riskier decisions were made by the subjects with more distortion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Concha Martínez-García
- Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology, University of Huelva, Huelva, Spain
| | - Cecilio Parra-Martínez
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Experimental Sciences, Research Center for Natural Resources, Health and the Environment (RENSMA), University of Huelva, Huelva, Spain
| | - Ángel T. Parra
- Department of Medicine, University of Seville, Seville, Spain
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Li G, Zhang S, Le TM, Tang X, Li CSR. Neural Responses to Reward in a Gambling Task: Sex Differences and Individual Variation in Reward-Driven Impulsivity. Cereb Cortex Commun 2020; 1:tgaa025. [PMID: 32864617 PMCID: PMC7446303 DOI: 10.1093/texcom/tgaa025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2020] [Revised: 05/12/2020] [Accepted: 06/13/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Previous work suggests sex differences in reward sensitivity. However, it remains unclear how men and women differ in the neural processes of reward-driven impulsivity. With a data set of 968 subjects (502 women) curated from the Human Connectome Project, we investigated sex differences in regional activations to reward and to punishment in a gambling task. Individual variations in reward-driven impulsivity were quantified by the difference in reaction time between reward and punishment blocks in the gambling task, as well as by a behavioral measure of delay discounting. At a corrected threshold, men and women exhibited significant differences in regional activations to reward and to punishment. Longer reaction times during reward versus punishment blocks, indicative of more cautious responding, were associated with left-hemispheric lateral prefrontal cortical activation to reward in men but not women. Steeper discounting was associated with higher activation to reward in the right-hemispheric dorsal anterior cingulate cortex and angular gyrus in women but not men. These sex differences were confirmed in slope tests. Together, the results highlight the sex-specific neural processes of reward-driven impulsivity with left-hemispheric prefrontal cortex supporting impulse control in men and right-hemispheric saliency circuit playing a more important role in diminished impulse control in women.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guangfei Li
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06519, USA
| | - Sheng Zhang
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06519, USA
| | - Thang M Le
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06519, USA
| | - Xiaoying Tang
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Life Sciences, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 10081, China
| | - Chiang-Shan R Li
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06519, USA
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Singh V, Schiebener J, Müller SM, Liebherr M, Brand M, Buelow MT. Country and Sex Differences in Decision Making Under Uncertainty and Risk. Front Psychol 2020; 11:486. [PMID: 32265793 PMCID: PMC7101158 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00486] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2019] [Accepted: 03/02/2020] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Whether males and females differ in decision-making remains highly debatable. However, a male advantage in decision making is observed in animal as well as human models of the iowa gambling task (IGT), and, in case of the latter, the difference is observed across a wide range of age groups. It is unclear if these sex differences on the IGT are malleable to environmental influences such as sociocultural factors. We tested sex differences during the uncertainty and risk phases of the IGT in data pooled from three countries that reflected high, moderate, to low gender-equity (Germany, United States, and India: N = 531, female = 269). Comparing the net scores in uncertainty vs. risk blocks (first two vs. last two blocks) confirmed the male-advantage on the IGT across the three countries, specifically in the risk blocks, with the highest male-advantage observed for Germany. Results are discussed in terms of sex differences in reaction to uncertainty vs. risk, and the counter-intuitive effect of gender-equitable environment suggesting that national/environmental factors might influence advantageous decision making, but in ways that accentuate rather than abate sex differences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Varsha Singh
- Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, New Delhi, India
| | - Johannes Schiebener
- Department of General Psychology Cognition, University of Duisburg-Essen, Duisburg, Germany
| | - Silke M. Müller
- Department of General Psychology Cognition, University of Duisburg-Essen, Duisburg, Germany
| | - Magnus Liebherr
- Department of General Psychology Cognition, University of Duisburg-Essen, Duisburg, Germany
| | - Matthias Brand
- Department of General Psychology Cognition, University of Duisburg-Essen, Duisburg, Germany
| | - Melissa T. Buelow
- Department of Psychology, The Ohio State University, Newark, OH, United States
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Flores-Torres J, Gómez-Pérez L, McRae K, López V, Rubio I, Rodríguez E. Humor Improves Women's but Impairs Men's Iowa Gambling Task Performance. Front Psychol 2019; 10:2538. [PMID: 31803100 PMCID: PMC6874095 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02538] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2019] [Accepted: 10/28/2019] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
The Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) is a popular method for examining real-life decision-making. Research has shown gender related differences in performance, in that men consistently outperform women. It has been suggested that these performance differences are related to decreased emotional control in women compared to men. Given the likely role of emotion in these gender differences, in the present study, we examine the effect of a humor induction on IGT performance and whether the effect of humor is moderated by gender. IGT performance and parameters from the Expectancy Valence Model (EVM) were measured in 68 university students (34 men; mean age 22.02, SD = 4.3 and 34 women; mean age 22.3, SD = 4.1) during a 100 trial-IGT task. Participants were exposed to a brief video before each of the IGT decisions available; one half of the samples (17 men and 17 women) was exposed to 100 humor videos, while the other half was exposed to 100 non-humor videos during the task. We observed a significant interaction between gender and humor, such that under humor, women's performance during the last block (trials 80-100) improved (compared to women under non-humor), whereas men's performance during the last block was worse (compared to men under non-humor). Consistent with previous work, under non-humor, men outperformed women in the last block. Lastly, our EVM results show that humor impacts the learning mechanisms of decision-making differently in men and women. Humor impaired men's ability to acquire knowledge about the payoff structure of the decks, and as a consequence, they were stuck in suboptimal performance. On the other hand, humor facilitated women's ability to explore and to learn from experience, improving performance. These findings deepen our understanding of the mechanisms underlying IGT decision-making and differential effects of humor in men and women.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jorge Flores-Torres
- Escuela de Psicología, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Lydia Gómez-Pérez
- Escuela de Psicología, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Kateri McRae
- Department of Psychology, College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Denver, Denver, CO, United States
| | - Vladimir López
- Escuela de Psicología, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Ivan Rubio
- Escuela de Psicología, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Eugenio Rodríguez
- Escuela de Psicología, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
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Shukla M, Rasmussen EC, Nestor PG. Emotion and decision-making: Induced mood influences IGT scores and deck selection strategies. J Clin Exp Neuropsychol 2019; 41:341-352. [DOI: 10.1080/13803395.2018.1562049] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Mohinish Shukla
- Department of Psychology, University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Eileen C. Rasmussen
- Department of Psychology, University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Paul G. Nestor
- Department of Psychology, University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, MA, USA
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Let's call the whole thing off: evaluating gender and sex differences in executive function. Neuropsychopharmacology 2019; 44:86-96. [PMID: 30143781 PMCID: PMC6235899 DOI: 10.1038/s41386-018-0179-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 115] [Impact Index Per Article: 23.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2018] [Revised: 07/30/2018] [Accepted: 08/06/2018] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
The executive functions allow for purposeful, deliberate, and intentional interactions with the world-attention and focus, impulse control, decision making, and working memory. These measures have been correlated with academic outcomes and quality of life, and are impacted by deleterious environmental events throughout the life span, including gestational and early life insults. This review will address the topic of sex differences in executive function including a discussion of differences arising in response to developmental programming. Work on gender differences in human studies and sex differences in animal research will be reviewed. Overall, we find little support for significant gender or sex differences in executive function. An important variable that factors into the interpretation of potential sex differences include differing developmental trajectories. We conclude by discussing future directions for the field and a brief discussion of biological mechanisms.
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Reber J, Tranel D. Sex differences in the functional lateralization of emotion and decision making in the human brain. J Neurosci Res 2017; 95:270-278. [PMID: 27870462 DOI: 10.1002/jnr.23829] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2016] [Revised: 06/16/2016] [Accepted: 06/20/2016] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
Dating back to the case of Phineas Gage, decades of neuropsychological research have shown that the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) is crucial to both real-world social functioning and abstract decision making in the laboratory (see, e.g., Stuss et al., ; Bechara et al., 1994; Damasio et al., ). Previous research has shown that the relationship between the laterality of individuals' vmPFC lesions and neuropsychological performance is moderated by their sex, whereby there are more severe social, emotional, and decision-making impairments in men with right-side vmPFC lesions and in women with left-side vmPFC lesions (Tranel et al., 2005; Sutterer et al., 2015). We conducted a selective review of studies examining the effect of vmPFC lesions on emotion and decision making and found further evidence of sex-related differences in the lateralization of function not only in the vmPFC but also in other neurological structures associated with decision making and emotion. This Mini-Review suggests that both sex and laterality effects warrant more careful consideration in the scientific literature. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Justin Reber
- Departments of Psychological and Brain Sciences and Neurology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa
| | - Daniel Tranel
- Departments of Psychological and Brain Sciences and Neurology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa
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Wright RJ, Rakow T, Russo R. Go for broke: The role of somatic states when asked to lose in the Iowa Gambling Task. Biol Psychol 2016; 123:286-293. [PMID: 27984085 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2016.10.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2015] [Revised: 10/24/2016] [Accepted: 10/26/2016] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
The Somatic Marker Hypothesis (SMH) posits that somatic states develop and guide advantageous decision making by "marking" disadvantageous options (i.e., arousal increases when poor options are considered). This assumption was tested using the standard Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) in which participants win/lose money by selecting among four decks of cards, and an alternative version, identical in both structure and payoffs, but with the aim changed to lose as much money as possible. This "lose" version of the IGT reverses which decks are advantageous/disadvantageous; and so reverses which decks should be marked by somatic responses - which we assessed via skin conductance (SC). Participants learned to pick advantageously in the original (Win) IGT and in the (new) Lose IGT. Using multilevel regression, some variability in anticipatory SC across blocks was found but no consistent effect of anticipatory SC on disadvantageous deck selections. Thus, while we successfully developed a new way to test the central claims of the SMH, we did not find consistent support for the SMH.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rebecca J Wright
- Department of Psychology, University of Essex, Wivenhoe Park, Colchester CO4 3SQ, United Kingdom.
| | - Tim Rakow
- King's College London, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, United Kingdom.
| | - Riccardo Russo
- Department of Psychology, University of Essex, Wivenhoe Park, Colchester CO4 3SQ, United Kingdom.
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He Q, Chen M, Chen C, Xue G, Feng T, Bechara A. Anodal Stimulation of the Left DLPFC Increases IGT Scores and Decreases Delay Discounting Rate in Healthy Males. Front Psychol 2016; 7:1421. [PMID: 27703440 PMCID: PMC5028393 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01421] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2016] [Accepted: 09/05/2016] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Previous correlational imaging studies have implicated the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) in decision making. Using High-Definition Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (HD-tDCS), the present study directly investigated the causal role of the DLPFC in performing the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) and the Inter-Temporal Choice (ITC) task. Three experiments were conducted: Experiment 1 (N = 41) to study the left DLPFC, Experiment 2 (N = 49) to study the right DLPFC, and Experiment 3 (N = 20, a subset of those in Experiment 1) to switch the experimental and control conditions. All participants were healthy male college students. For Experiments 1 and 2, participants were randomly assigned to either the HD-tDCS or the sham stimulation condition. For Experiment 3, participants were assigned to the condition they were not in during Experiment 1. Results showed that HD-tDCS over the left DLPFC increased IGT score, decreased the recency parameter in IGT, and lowered delay discounting rate (k) in the ITC task. We discussed the potential roles of impulse control and time perception in mediating the effect of tDCS stimulation of left DLPFC on decision making. Our results have clinical implications for the treatment of disorders involving poor decision-making, such as addictions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qinghua He
- Decision Neuroscience Lab, Faculty of Psychology, Southwest UniversityChongqing, China; Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Southwest UniversityChongqing, China; Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of SciencesBeijing, China; Southwest University Branch, Collaborative Innovation Center of Assessment Toward Basic Education Quality at Beijing Normal UniversityChongqing, China
| | - Mei Chen
- Decision Neuroscience Lab, Faculty of Psychology, Southwest UniversityChongqing, China; Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Southwest UniversityChongqing, China
| | - Chuansheng Chen
- Department of Psychology and Social Behavior, University of California at Irvine, Irvine CA, USA
| | - Gui Xue
- National Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University Beijing, China
| | - Tingyong Feng
- Decision Neuroscience Lab, Faculty of Psychology, Southwest UniversityChongqing, China; Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Southwest UniversityChongqing, China
| | - Antoine Bechara
- Brain and Creativity Institute and Department of Psychology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles CA, USA
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Sex differences in inhibitory control in socially-housed baboons (Papio papio). Behav Brain Res 2016; 312:231-7. [PMID: 27321783 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2016.06.032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2016] [Revised: 06/14/2016] [Accepted: 06/15/2016] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
Abstract
Inhibitory control is an important component of executive function. An emerging literature in humans suggests that inhibitory control is sexually dimorphic and modulated by sex steroids, but evidence for such a link in nonhuman animals is scarce. In this study, we examined the effects of menstrual cycle and biological sex on response inhibition, as measured by a Stop-Signal task, in the baboon (Papio papio). The monkeys (n=13) were socially-housed, with voluntary access to multiple touchscreen computerized stations. The task required monkeys to inhibit prepotent responses (touching a target, "Go" trials) following the appearance of a visual stop signal on 25% of the trials ("Stop" trials). The cognitive data, consisting of computerized records of the monkeys' performance on the Stop-Signal task over a year of testing, were matched to records of female sexual swellings. Same-day menstrual and cognitive data were available for 5 females, aged 5-18 years. These data were compared to those of 8 males (5-14 years old) performing the Stop-Signal task over the same time period. Contrary to our hypothesis, performance on the task was not significantly affected by the phase (ovulatory vs. luteal) of the cycle in females. However, males were slower than females on Go trials and were less efficient in inhibiting responses on Stop trials. Slower responses in males were indicative of a speed-accuracy trade-off, as overall accuracy was also better in males than in females. Analyses of trial history indicated that males did not speed as much as females following a successful Go trial, but did not differ from females in post-error slowing or post-inhibiting responses. Overall, the data show that biological sex modulates Stop-Signal performance in the baboon, with males exhibiting slower response execution overall, less efficient inhibition, but greater accuracy than females. This pattern of sex differences may reflect motivational sex differences in which males emphasize accuracy rather than speed. Interestingly, these sex differences do not seem to vary as a function of ovarian hormones in females. Males' greater focus on accuracy is possibly due to enhanced sensitivity to reward mediated by testosterone levels.
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Reversal learning in gonadectomized marmosets with and without hormone replacement: are males more sensitive to punishment? Anim Cogn 2016; 19:619-30. [PMID: 26909674 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-016-0966-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2015] [Revised: 01/14/2016] [Accepted: 02/10/2016] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
This study examined sex differences in executive function in middle-aged gonadectomized marmosets (Callithrix jacchus) with or without hormonal replacement. We tested ten castrated male (mean age 5.5 years) marmosets treated with testosterone cypionate (T, n = 5) or vehicle (n = 5) on Reversal Learning, which contributes to cognitive flexibility, and the Delayed Response task, measuring working memory. Their performance was compared to that of 11 ovariectomized females (mean age = 3.7 years) treated with Silastic capsules filled with 17-β estradiol (E2, n = 6) or empty capsules (n = 5), previously tested on the same tasks (Lacreuse et al. in J Neuroendocrinol 26:296-309, 2014. doi: 10.1111/jne.12147). Behavioral observations were conducted daily. Females exhibited more locomotor behaviors than males. Males and females did not differ in the number of trials taken to reach criterion on the reversals, but males had significantly longer response latencies, regardless of hormone replacement. They also had a greater number of refusals than females. Additionally, both control and T-treated males, but not females, had slower responses on incorrect trials, suggesting that males were making errors due to distraction, lack of motivation or uncertainty. Furthermore, although both males and females had slower responding following an incorrect compared to a correct trial, the sex difference in response latencies was disproportionally large following an incorrect trial. No sex difference was found in the Delayed Response task. Overall, slower response latencies in males than females during Reversal Learning, especially during and following an incorrect trial, may reflect greater sensitivity to punishment (omission of reward) and greater performance monitoring in males, compared to females. Because these differences occurred in gonadectomized animals and regardless of hormone replacement, they may be organized early in life.
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Richard-Devantoy S, Olié E, Guillaume S, Courtet P. Decision-making in unipolar or bipolar suicide attempters. J Affect Disord 2016; 190:128-136. [PMID: 26496018 DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2015.10.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2015] [Revised: 09/30/2015] [Accepted: 10/02/2015] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Disadvantageous decision-making (mainly measured by the Iowa Gambling Task) has been demonstrated in patients with suicidal behavior compared to controls. We, therefore, aimed at clarifying the qualitative and quantitative relationship between decision-making and the risk of suicidal behavior in unipolar and bipolar disorders respectively, as well as establishing the strength of this relationship. METHODS (1) We conducted a cross-sectional study comparing IGT performances between 141 unipolar suicide attempters and 57 bipolar suicide attempters. (2) We conducted a systematic review and a meta-analysis of studies comparing IGT performances in patients with vs. without a history of suicidal acts in bipolar and unipolar disorder, together and separately. RESULTS (1) Among suicide attempters, bipolar and unipolar groups performed similarly (t(195)=-0.7; p=0.48). Unipolar non-attempters performed better IGT than unipolar suicide attempters (t(221)=3.1; p=0.002), only in female gender, whereas performances were similar in bipolar patients whatever the history of suicide attempt (t(77)=-0.3; p=0.7). (2) A meta-analysis of 10 studies confirmed significantly impaired decision-making with a moderate effect-size (-0.38 (95% CI[-0.61--0.16]; z=-3.3; p=0.001) in unipolar disorder and (g=-0.4 (95% CI[-0.75 to -0.05]; z=-2.2; p<0.026) in bipolar disorder suicide attempters compared to unipolar and bipolar non-attempters, respectively. LIMITATIONS It was not possible to analyse according to the level of lethality attempt. CONCLUSION Overall, a strong significant association was found between decision-making and the risk of suicidal behavior in unipolar disorder and bipolar disorder. However, further neuropsychological studies need to analyse separately unipolar and bipolar disorder and to study gender differences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stéphane Richard-Devantoy
- McGill University, Department of Psychiatry & Douglas Mental Health University, Institute McGill Group for Suicide Studies, FBC Building, 3rd floor, 6875 Boulevard Lasalle, Montréal (Québec), & Hôpital Régional de Saint-Jérôme, Saint-Jérôme, Québec, Canada; Laboratoire de Psychologie des Pays de la Loire EA 4638, Université de Nantes et Angers, France.
| | - Emilie Olié
- Université Montpellier & CHU Montpellier & Inserm, U1061 Montpellier, France
| | - Sébastien Guillaume
- Université Montpellier & CHU Montpellier & Inserm, U1061 Montpellier, France
| | - Philippe Courtet
- Université Montpellier & CHU Montpellier & Inserm, U1061 Montpellier, France
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15
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Evans KL, Hampson E. Sex-dependent effects on tasks assessing reinforcement learning and interference inhibition. Front Psychol 2015; 6:1044. [PMID: 26257691 PMCID: PMC4510310 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01044] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2015] [Accepted: 07/09/2015] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Increasing evidence suggests that the prefrontal cortex (PFC) is influenced by sex steroids and that some cognitive functions dependent on the PFC may be sexually differentiated in humans. Past work has identified a male advantage on certain complex reinforcement learning tasks, but it is unclear which latent task components are important to elicit the sex difference. The objective of the current study was to investigate whether there are sex differences on measures of response inhibition and valenced feedback processing, elements that are shared by previously studied reinforcement learning tasks. Healthy young adults (90 males, 86 females) matched in general intelligence completed the Probabilistic Selection Task (PST), a Simon task, and the Stop-Signal task. On the PST, females were more accurate than males in learning from positive (but not negative) feedback. On the Simon task, males were faster than females, especially in the face of incongruent stimuli. No sex difference was observed in Stop-Signal reaction time. The current findings provide preliminary support for a sex difference in the processing of valenced feedback and in interference inhibition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kelly L. Evans
- Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario, LondonON, Canada
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16
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Zhang L, Wang K, Zhu C, Yu F, Chen X. Trait Anxiety Has Effect on Decision Making under Ambiguity but Not Decision Making under Risk. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0127189. [PMID: 26000629 PMCID: PMC4441420 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0127189] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2014] [Accepted: 04/12/2015] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Previous studies have reported that trait anxiety (TA) affects decision making. However, results remain largely inconsistent across studies. The aim of the current study was to further address the interaction between TA and decision making. 304 subjects without depression from a sample consisting of 642 participants were grouped into high TA (HTA), medium TA (MTA) and low TA (LTA) groups based on their TA scores from State Trait Anxiety Inventory. All subjects were assessed with the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) that measures decision making under ambiguity and the Game of Dice Task (GDT) that measures decision making under risk. While the HTA and LTA groups performed worse on the IGT compared to the MTA group, performances on the GDT between the three groups did not differ. Furthermore, the LTA and HTA groups showed different individual deck level preferences in the IGT: the former showed a preference for deck B indicating that these subjects focused more on the magnitude of rewards, and the latter showed a preference for deck A indicating significant decision making impairment. Our findings suggest that trait anxiety has effect on decision making under ambiguity but not decision making under risk and different levels of trait anxiety related differently to individual deck level preferences in the IGT.
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Affiliation(s)
- Long Zhang
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
| | - Kai Wang
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
- * E-mail:
| | - Chunyan Zhu
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
| | - Fengqiong Yu
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
| | - Xingui Chen
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
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17
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Weller JA, Buchanan TW, Shackleford C, Morganstern A, Hartman JJ, Yuska J, Denburg NL. Diurnal cortisol rhythm is associated with increased risky decision-making in older adults. Psychol Aging 2015; 29:271-83. [PMID: 24955995 DOI: 10.1037/a0036623] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
Although past research has suggested a link between chronic stress and both physical and mental well-being in older adults, less is known about the degree to which neuroendocrine markers of stress are associated with higher-order cognitive processes such as decision-making. In a sample of healthy older adults (55-85 years), we tested the degree to which variation in the diurnal cortisol rhythm, an index of hypothalamic-adrenal-pituitary axis dynamics, was related to differences in risky decision-making. We found that diurnal cortisol fall predicted performance on the Cups Task, a risky decision-making task that independently tests risk-taking to achieve gains and risk-taking to avoid losses. For potential gains, we found that greater risk-taking was associated with lower diurnal cortisol fall, independent of age or sex of the participant. For risks to avoid potential losses, we found that lower diurnal fall was associated with suboptimal decision-making for men only. Compared with males with more typical diurnal fall, those who displayed lower diurnal fall made more risky choices and demonstrated lower sensitivity to the expected value of the risky choice. We integrate these results with the extant literature on the effects of stress on decision-making and cognitive aging.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Joshua J Hartman
- Department of Neurology, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine
| | - Jonathan Yuska
- Department of Neurology, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine
| | - Natalie L Denburg
- Department of Neurology, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine
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18
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Sex differences on prefrontally-dependent cognitive tasks. Brain Cogn 2015; 93:42-53. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bandc.2014.11.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2013] [Revised: 11/20/2014] [Accepted: 11/26/2014] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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19
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Derntl B, Pintzinger N, Kryspin-Exner I, Schöpf V. The impact of sex hormone concentrations on decision-making in females and males. Front Neurosci 2014; 8:352. [PMID: 25414632 PMCID: PMC4220662 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2014.00352] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2014] [Accepted: 10/14/2014] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Human decision-making has been frequently studied and sex differences have been reported. Interestingly, previous results of hormone concentration on decision-making are somewhat inconsistent, regarding the impact of menstrual cycle phase in women or the influence of testosterone concentration on decision-making in women and men. However, the influence of the female sex hormone concentration (estradiol, progesterone) and the impact of oral contraceptive intake have rarely been examined and data regarding the effect of daytime variations of male testosterone are lacking. Moreover if personality factors such as sensation seeking, impulsivity, and anxiety influence decision-making, sex-specific effects, act as modulators is unclear. In the present study 71 women and 45 men were enrolled. All participants performed an evaluated decision-making task measuring risk-taking behavior on the basis of contingencies (Haegler et al., 2010), which can be carried out several times without a learning effect. Saliva samples were collected to obtain estradiol, progesterone, and testosterone levels. Additionally, all participants completed questionnaires measuring various personality factors. Data analysis revealed no sex differences in decision-making and no significant impact of testosterone concentration on behavioral performance in women or men. However, a significant negative correlation between progesterone concentration of women in the luteal phase and their performance in the risk-averse condition was obtained. Interestingly, a significant correlation between trait anxiety and decision-making occurred in females and males. Despite similar risky decision-making of women and men and no influence of testosterone concentration, menstrual cycle phase showed an effect on risk taking in women. In contrary to other studies, our findings provide rather subtle evidence for hormonal influences in decision-making, which may be primarily explained by task factors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Birgit Derntl
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, RWTH Aachen University Aachen, Germany ; Jülich Aachen Research Alliance (JARA BRAIN), Translational Brain Medicine Jülich/Aachen, Germany ; Institute for Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-1), Research Center Jülich Jülich, Germany
| | | | | | - Veronika Schöpf
- Department of Biomedical Imaging and Image-guided Therapy, Medical University of Vienna Vienna, Austria
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20
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Overman WH, Pierce A. Iowa Gambling Task with non-clinical participants: effects of using real + virtual cards and additional trials. Front Psychol 2013; 4:935. [PMID: 24376431 PMCID: PMC3859904 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00935] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2013] [Accepted: 11/26/2013] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Performance on the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) in clinical populations can be interpreted only in relation to established baseline performance in normal populations. As in all comparisons of assessment tools, the normal baseline must reflect performance under conditions in which subjects can function at their best levels. In this review, we show that a number of variables enhance IGT performance in non-clinical participants. First, optimal performance is produced by having participants turn over real cards while viewing virtual cards on a computer screen. The use of only virtual cards results in significantly lower performance than the combination of real + virtual cards. Secondly, administration of more than 100 trials also enhances performance. When using the real/virtual card procedure, performance is shown to significantly increase from early adolescence through young adulthood. Under these conditions young (mean age 19 years) and older (mean age 59 years) adults perform equally. Females, as a group, score lower than males because females tend to choose cards from high-frequency-of-gain Deck B. Groups of females with high or low gonadal hormones perform equally. Concurrent tasks, e.g., presentation of aromas, decrease performance in males. Age and gender effects are discussed in terms of a dynamic between testosterone and orbital prefrontal cortex.
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Affiliation(s)
- William H Overman
- Department of Psychology, University of North Carolina Wilmington Wilmington, NC, USA
| | - Allison Pierce
- Department of Psychology, University of North Carolina Wilmington Wilmington, NC, USA
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21
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van den Bos R, Davies W, Dellu-Hagedorn F, Goudriaan AE, Granon S, Homberg J, Rivalan M, Swendsen J, Adriani W. Cross-species approaches to pathological gambling: a review targeting sex differences, adolescent vulnerability and ecological validity of research tools. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2013; 37:2454-71. [PMID: 23867802 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2013.07.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2013] [Revised: 05/28/2013] [Accepted: 07/08/2013] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Decision-making plays a pivotal role in daily life as impairments in processes underlying decision-making often lead to an inability to make profitable long-term decisions. As a case in point, pathological gamblers continue gambling despite the fact that this disrupts their personal, professional or financial life. The prevalence of pathological gambling will likely increase in the coming years due to expanding possibilities of on-line gambling through the Internet and increasing liberal attitudes towards gambling. It therefore represents a growing concern for society. Both human and animal studies rapidly advance our knowledge on brain-behaviour processes relevant for understanding normal and pathological gambling behaviour. Here, we review in humans and animals three features of pathological gambling which hitherto have received relatively little attention: (1) sex differences in (the development of) pathological gambling, (2) adolescence as a (putative) sensitive period for (developing) pathological gambling and (3) avenues for improving ecological validity of research tools. Based on these issues we also discuss how research in humans and animals may be brought in line to maximize translational research opportunities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruud van den Bos
- Department of Organismal Animal Physiology, Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen, The Netherlands; Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, University Medical Centre Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
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22
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Abstract
O Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) é uma tarefa amplamente utilizada na avaliação da capacidade de tomada de decisão. Neste artigo, procede-se à revisão da literatura, comparando-se as versões do IGT, as diferentes medidas de avaliação do desempenho e as alterações introduzidas nos procedimentos, nomeadamente no feedback, na aleatorização espacial dos baralhos, no número de ensaios e de cartas por baralho, nas instruções, na remuneração e na manipulação das recompensas e punições. Desta análise, conclui-se que as diversas versões da tarefa, as alterações nos procedimentos de aplicação e as diferentes medidas utilizadas na avaliação têm impacto no desempenho, prejudicam a comparação entre estudos e as generalizações dos resultados. Finalmente, apresentam-se sugestões para uma maior adequação dos procedimentos.
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23
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van den Bos R, Homberg J, de Visser L. A critical review of sex differences in decision-making tasks: focus on the Iowa Gambling Task. Behav Brain Res 2012; 238:95-108. [PMID: 23078950 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2012.10.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 175] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2012] [Revised: 10/04/2012] [Accepted: 10/06/2012] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
It has been observed that men and women show performance differences in the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT), a task of decision-making in which subjects through exploration learn to differentiate long-term advantageous from long-term disadvantageous decks of cards: men choose more cards from the long-term advantageous decks than women within the standard number of 100 trials. Here, we aim at discussing psychological mechanisms and neurobiological substrates underlying sex differences in IGT-like decision-making. Our review suggests that women focus on both win-loss frequencies and long-term pay-off of decks, while men focus on long-term pay-off. Furthermore, women may be more sensitive to occasional losses in the long-term advantageous decks than men. As a consequence hereof, women need 40-60 trials in addition before they reach the same level of performance as men. These performance differences are related to differences in activity in the orbitofrontal cortex and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex as well as in serotonergic activity and left-right hemispheric activity. Sex differences in orbitofrontal cortex activity may be due to organisational effects of gonadal hormones early in life. The behavioural and neurobiological differences in the IGT between men and women are an expression of more general sex differences in the regulation of emotions. We discuss these findings in the context of sex differences in information processing related to evolutionary processes. Furthermore we discuss the relationship between these findings and real world decision-making.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruud van den Bos
- Department of Neuroscience and Pharmacology, Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, University Medical Centre Utrecht, Utrecht University, Universiteitsweg 100, 3584 CG Utrecht, The Netherlands.
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24
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van den Bos R, Jolles J, van der Knaap L, Baars A, de Visser L. Male and female Wistar rats differ in decision-making performance in a rodent version of the Iowa Gambling Task. Behav Brain Res 2012; 234:375-9. [PMID: 22814113 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2012.07.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2012] [Revised: 07/05/2012] [Accepted: 07/09/2012] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
The Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) measures decision-making processes by simulating real-life decisions involving reward, punishment, and uncertainty of outcomes. In humans, men show more choices for the advantageous option than women. Here, we investigated sex differences in a rat model of the IGT (r-IGT). In our r-IGT mildly food-deprived rats learn to differentiate a long-term advantageous arm from a long-term disadvantageous arm differing in frequency and amount of sugar pellets as well as unpalatable but not uneatable quinine-treated sugar pellets. We also used a T-maze discrimination procedure in which rats learn to differentiate a high from a low reward arm to further explore sex differences in reward-related decision-making. In line with human data, male rats showed a stronger task progression of choices for the advantageous option than female rats. Furthermore, male rats showed more win-stay and less lose-shift behaviour in the advantageous arm as the task progressed than female rats. Whilst both male and female rats had a stronger preference for the high over the small reward arm in the T-maze, males increased this preference over sessions, whilst females did not. These data are discussed in relation to sex differences in processing rewards and punishments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruud van den Bos
- Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
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25
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van Hasselt FN, de Visser L, Tieskens JM, Cornelisse S, Baars AM, Lavrijsen M, Krugers HJ, van den Bos R, Joëls M. Individual variations in maternal care early in life correlate with later life decision-making and c-fos expression in prefrontal subregions of rats. PLoS One 2012; 7:e37820. [PMID: 22693577 PMCID: PMC3365050 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0037820] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2012] [Accepted: 04/24/2012] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Early life adversity affects hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis activity, alters cognitive functioning and in humans is thought to increase the vulnerability to psychopathology--e.g. depression, anxiety and schizophrenia--later in life. Here we investigated whether subtle natural variations among individual rat pups in the amount of maternal care received, i.e. differences in the amount of licking and grooming (LG), correlate with anxiety and prefrontal cortex-dependent behavior in young adulthood. Therefore, we examined the correlation between LG received during the first postnatal week and later behavior in the elevated plus maze and in decision-making processes using a rodent version of the Iowa Gambling Task (rIGT). In our cohort of male and female animals a high degree of LG correlated with less anxiety in the elevated plus maze and more advantageous choices during the last 10 trials of the rIGT. In tissue collected 2 hrs after completion of the task, the correlation between LG and c-fos expression (a marker of neuronal activity) was established in structures important for IGT performance. Negative correlations existed between rIGT performance and c-fos expression in the lateral orbitofrontal cortex, prelimbic cortex, infralimbic cortex and insular cortex. The insular cortex correlations between c-fos expression and decision-making performance depended on LG background; this was also true for the lateral orbitofrontal cortex in female rats. Dendritic complexity of insular or infralimbic pyramidal neurons did not or weakly correlate with LG background. We conclude that natural variations in maternal care received by pups may significantly contribute to later-life decision-making and activity of underlying brain structures.
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26
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Negative mood induction normalizes decision making in male cocaine dependent individuals. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2011; 217:331-9. [PMID: 21484236 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-011-2288-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2010] [Accepted: 03/25/2011] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE Decision making is thought to play a key role in psychostimulant relapse, but very few studies have addressed the issue of how to counteract decision-making deficits in addicted individuals. According to the somatic marker framework, pervasive decision-making problems in addicted individuals may relate to abnormalities in the processing of emotional signals that work to anticipate the prospective outcomes of potential decisions. OBJECTIVE The present study was conducted to test whether the induction of different emotional states (positive, negative, or drug-related) could either normalize or further impair decision-making performance in male cocaine polysubstance-using individuals (CPSI), as indexed by the Iowa gambling task (IGT). METHODS Forty-two CPSI and 65 healthy control individuals (all males) were randomly allocated in four affective conditions using a parallel-group design. Participants in the different conditions performed the IGT during exposure to neutral, positive, negative, or drug-related sets of affective images. RESULTS The results showed that the CPSI exposed to the negative affective context showed a preference for the risk-averse safe choices of the IGT and had a net performance indistinguishable from that of controls. On the other hand, CPSI exposed to positive, drug-related, and neutral contexts showed the typical pattern of disadvantageous performance in the IGT and performed significantly poorer than controls. The impact of the negative mood induction could not be explained in terms of baseline differences in decision-making skills, personality traits related to sensitivity to reward/punishment, or trait positive/negative affect. CONCLUSIONS We conclude that negative mood induction can normalize decision-making performance in male CPSI, which may have important implications for the treatment of cocaine use-related disorders.
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Jansen BRJ, van Duijvenvoorde ACK, Huizenga HM. Development of decision making: sequential versus integrative rules. J Exp Child Psychol 2011; 111:87-100. [PMID: 21911222 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2011.07.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2009] [Revised: 06/27/2011] [Accepted: 07/19/2011] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Decisions can be made by applying a variety of decision-making rules-sequential rules in which decisions are based on a sequential evaluation of choice dimensions and the integrative normative rule in which decisions are based on an integration of choice dimensions. In this study, we investigated the developmental trajectory of such decision-making rules. In the Gambling Machine Task, participants choose between options that differ in three dimensions: frequency of loss, amount of loss, and certain gain. The task was administered to 231 children and adolescents (age range=8-17 years). Latent group analysis of their performance allowed precise classification of the underlying decision rules. The majority of participants used sequential decision rules, and the number of evaluated dimensions in these rules increased with age. Integrative rule use decreased with age. We discuss these results in light of traditional developmental theories and fuzzy trace theory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brenda R J Jansen
- Department of Developmental Psychology, University of Amsterdam, 1018 WB Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
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28
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Overman WH, Boettcher L, Watterson L, Walsh K. Effects of dilemmas and aromas on performance of the Iowa Gambling Task. Behav Brain Res 2010; 218:64-72. [PMID: 21074576 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2010.11.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2010] [Revised: 10/25/2010] [Accepted: 11/05/2010] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Males outscore females on the original version of the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT). This may be due to differential regional prefrontal cortical activation by males and females during the task. PET imagery indicates increased activation in dorsolateral (DL) prefrontal cortex (PFC) in males and in medial orbital (ORB) PFC in females. A recent study reported that females' scores were elevated to the level of males' by having them deliberate moral dilemmas during the IGT. This was presumably due to a relative shift in PFC activation from medial ORB PFC to DL PFC areas. In the present study, after adding new participants and combining results from previous studies we failed to find a significant effect of deliberating dilemmas prior to or during the original IGT performance. However, the typical gender effect was replicated, as was the females' preference for cards from Deck B. The lack of dilemma-enhancement fails to support our previous suggestion of increasing activation in DL during the task. However, we investigated whether activation of ORB (also secondary olfactory cortex) would change IGT performance. When smelling novel aromas during the IGT, males' performance was reduced to the level of females whose performance was unchanged. This finding suggests that activation of emotional neural substrates might alter the dual cognitive (DL)/emotional (ORB) circuits that interact during decision-making.
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Affiliation(s)
- William H Overman
- University of North Carolina Wilmington, Psychology Department, 601 South College Road, Wilmington, NC 28401, United States.
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29
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He Q, Xue G, Chen C, Lu Z, Dong Q, Lei X, Ding N, Li J, Li H, Chen C, Li J, Moyzis RK, Bechara A. Serotonin transporter gene-linked polymorphic region (5-HTTLPR) influences decision making under ambiguity and risk in a large Chinese sample. Neuropharmacology 2010; 59:518-26. [PMID: 20659488 PMCID: PMC2946467 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2010.07.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 71] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2010] [Revised: 07/07/2010] [Accepted: 07/07/2010] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
Risky decision making is a complex process that involves weighing the probabilities of alternative options that can be desirable, undesirable, or neutral. Individuals vary greatly in how they make decisions either under ambiguity and/or under risk. Such individual differences may have genetic bases. Based on previous studies on the genetic basis of decision making, two decision making tasks [i.e., the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) and Loss Aversion Task (LAT)] were used to test the effect of 5-HTTLPR polymorphism on decision making under ambiguity and under risk in a large Han Chinese sample (572 college students, 312 females). Basic intelligence and memory tests were also included to control for the influence of basic cognitive abilities on decision making. We found that 5-HTTLPR polymorphism significantly influenced performance in both IGT and LAT. After controlling for intelligence and memory abilities, subjects homozygous for s allele had lower IGT scores than l carriers in the first 40 trials of the IGT task. They also exhibited higher loss aversion than l carriers in the LAT task. Moreover, the effects of 5-HTTLPR were stronger for males than for females. These results extend the literature on the important role of emotion in decision making under ambiguity and risk, and shed additional lights on how decision making is influenced by culture as well as sex differences. Combining our results with existing literature, we propose that these effects might be mediated by a neural circuitry that comprises the amygdala, ventromedial prefrontal cortex, and insular cortex. Understanding the genetic factors affecting decision making in healthy subjects may allow us to better identify at-risk individuals, and better target the development of new potential treatments for specific disorders such as schizophrenia, addiction, and depression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qinghua He
- National Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, P. R. China
- Department of Psychology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, 90089, United States
| | - Gui Xue
- Department of Psychology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, 90089, United States
| | - Chuansheng Chen
- Department of Psychology and Social Behavior, University of California, Irvine, 92697, United States
| | - Zhonglin Lu
- Department of Psychology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, 90089, United States
| | - Qi Dong
- National Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, P. R. China
| | - Xuemei Lei
- National Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, P. R. China
| | - Ni Ding
- National Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, P. R. China
| | - Jin Li
- National Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, P. R. China
- Department of Psychology and Social Behavior, University of California, Irvine, 92697, United States
| | - He Li
- National Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, P. R. China
| | - Chunhui Chen
- National Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, P. R. China
| | - Jun Li
- National Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, P. R. China
| | - Robert K. Moyzis
- Department of Biological Chemistry, University of California, Irvine, 92697, United States
| | - Antoine Bechara
- Department of Psychology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, 90089, United States
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30
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Ha RY, Namkoong K, Kang JI, Kim YT, Kim SJ. Interaction between serotonin transporter promoter and dopamine receptor D4 polymorphisms on decision making. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 2009; 33:1217-22. [PMID: 19615421 DOI: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2009.07.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2009] [Revised: 07/04/2009] [Accepted: 07/04/2009] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Appropriate decision making is an important brain function to maintain our lives. The Iowa gambling task (IGT) is a tool for decision making under ambiguity. The aims of this study were to evaluate the influence of serotonin transporter linked polymorphic region (5-HTTLPR) and dopamine receptor D4 (DRD4) polymorphisms and their interaction on IGT performance. One hundred fifty-nine normal subjects were involved in this study. All subjects performed the IGT and were genotyped for the triallelic 5-HTTLPR and DRD4 48 bp uVNTR polymorphisms. After controlling for gender, age, and impulsiveness, there were no main effects of 5-HTTLPR and DRD4 gene polymorphisms on total IGT score. However, there was a significant effect on the interaction between 5-HTTLPR and DRD4 on total IGT score. In the presence of the 5-HTTLPR S'S' (SS+SL(G)+L(G)L(G)), subjects with the DRD4 2R+ (2 repeat carrier) had higher total IGT score compared to those with the DRD4 2R-. In contrast, in the absence of the 5-HTTLPR S'S', subjects with the DRD4 2R- had higher total IGT score than those with the DRD4 2R+. When we divided IGT scores into the first and second half of trials, the 5-HTTLPRxDRD4 interaction effects were stronger in the second half block (decision under risk) than in the first half block (decision under ambiguity). In conclusion, the DRD4 genotypes might influence decision-making performance differently according to the background genotypes of 5-HTTLPR.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ra Yeon Ha
- Department of Psychiatry and Institute of Behavioral Science in Medicine, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, South Korea.
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Stoltenberg SF, Vandever JM. Gender moderates the association between 5-HTTLPR and decision-making under ambiguity but not under risk. Neuropharmacology 2009; 58:423-8. [PMID: 19781560 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2009.09.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2009] [Revised: 09/15/2009] [Accepted: 09/16/2009] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Decisions made under ambiguity may involve a different genetic architecture than those made under risk. Because gender moderates the effect of genetic polymorphisms on serotonin function and because there are gender differences in decision-making, the present study examined potential gender moderation of associations between polymorphisms in important serotonin system candidate genes (serotonin transporter [SLC6A4] and tryptophan hydroxylase-2 [TPH2]) and performance on a decision-making task (Iowa Gambling Task, IGT) in healthy, adults (N = 188; 62% women). Subjects were genotyped for the well-studied SLC6A4 promoter variant 5-HTTLPR and a TPH2 single nucleotide polymorphism in intron-8 (rs1386438). Genotype at rs1386438 was not associated with performance on the IGT. A significant gender by 5-HTTLPR genotype interaction effect was detected when decision-making was under ambiguity (i.e. the first block of 20 choices), but not under risk (blocks 2-5). Performance on the first block of 20 choices was not correlated with performance on subsequent blocks, supporting the interpretation that early performance on the IGT indexes decision-making under ambiguity, while performance on blocks 2-5 indexes decision-making under risk. These findings suggest that decision-making under ambiguity and risk may have different genetic architectures and that individual differences in decision-making under ambiguity are associated with genetic variation in SLC6A4.
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Affiliation(s)
- Scott F Stoltenberg
- Department of Psychology, Black Hills State University, Spearfish, SD 57799, USA.
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Fumagalli M, Ferrucci R, Mameli F, Marceglia S, Mrakic-Sposta S, Zago S, Lucchiari C, Consonni D, Nordio F, Pravettoni G, Cappa S, Priori A. Gender-related differences in moral judgments. Cogn Process 2009; 11:219-26. [DOI: 10.1007/s10339-009-0335-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 99] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2009] [Accepted: 08/10/2009] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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van der Plas EAA, Crone EA, van den Wildenberg WPM, Tranel D, Bechara A. Executive control deficits in substance-dependent individuals: a comparison of alcohol, cocaine, and methamphetamine and of men and women. J Clin Exp Neuropsychol 2009; 31:706-19. [PMID: 19037812 PMCID: PMC2829119 DOI: 10.1080/13803390802484797] [Citation(s) in RCA: 135] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
Abstract
Substance dependence is associated with executive function deficits, but the nature of these executive defects and the effect that different drugs and sex have on these defects have not been fully clarified. Therefore, we compared the performance of alcohol- (n = 33; 18 women), cocaine- (n = 27; 14 women), and methamphetamine-dependent individuals (n = 38; 25 women) with sex-matched healthy comparisons (n = 36; 17 women) on complex decision making as measured with the Iowa Gambling Task, working memory, cognitive flexibility, and response inhibition. Cocaine- and methamphetamine-dependent individuals were impaired on complex decision making, working memory, and cognitive flexibility, but not on response inhibition. The deficits in working memory and cognitive flexibility were milder than the decision-making deficits and did not change as a function of memory load or task switching. Interestingly, decision making was significantly more impaired in women addicted to cocaine or methamphetamine than in men addicted to these drugs. Together, these findings suggest that drug of choice and sex have different effects on executive functioning, which, if replicated, may help tailor intervention.
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Abstract
Impulsivity, a core symptom of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), is tested in animal models by delay-discounting tasks. So far, mainly male subjects have been used in this paradigm at severe levels of food restriction. Here we studied the impulsive behaviour of CD-1 adult male and female mice at mild levels of food restriction. Mice maintained at 90 +/- 5% of ad libitum bodyweight, were tested in operant chambers provided with nose-poking holes. Nose poking in one hole resulted in the immediate delivery of one food pellet (small-soon, SS), whereas nose poking in the other hole delivered five food pellets after a delay (large-late, LL), which was increased progressively each day (0-150 s). Two subgroups emerged: individuals that shifted at short delays ("steep") and individuals that did not shift, even at the highest delays ("flat"). Analysis showed that "steep" females shifted at shorter delays than "steep" males, while no difference existed between males and females within the "flat" sub-population. In home-cage circadian activity as well as in a novelty-seeking test, females were more active than males. It can be concluded from these results that female mice are more impulsive than male mice under mild food restriction. This is in contrast with findings in earlier studies with more severe food restriction. Therefore, an alternative explanation is that females are more explorative, and that different features might be tested in delay-discounting paradigms, depending on restriction levels.
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Weller JA, Levin IP, Bechara A. Do individual differences in Iowa Gambling Task performance predict adaptive decision making for risky gains and losses? J Clin Exp Neuropsychol 2009; 32:141-50. [PMID: 19484643 DOI: 10.1080/13803390902881926] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Antoine Bechara
- c Brain and Creativity Institute and Department of Psychology , University of Southern California , Los Angeles, CA, USA
- d Department of Neurology , University of Iowa Hospital and Clinics , Iowa City, IA, USA
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Huizenga HM, Crone EA, Jansen BJ. Decision-making in healthy children, adolescents and adults explained by the use of increasingly complex proportional reasoning rules. Dev Sci 2007; 10:814-25. [PMID: 17973798 DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-7687.2007.00621.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 80] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Hilde M Huizenga
- Department of Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
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Crone EA, van der Molen MW. Development of decision making in school-aged children and adolescents: evidence from heart rate and skin conductance analysis. Child Dev 2007; 78:1288-301. [PMID: 17650139 DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-8624.2007.01066.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 78] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Age differences in decision making indicate that children fail to anticipate outcomes of their decisions. Using heart rate and skin conductance analyses, we tested whether developmental changes in decision making are associated with (a) a failure to process outcomes of decisions, or (b) a failure to anticipate future outcomes of decisions. Children aged 8-10, 12-14, and 16-18 years performed the Hungry Donkey task, a child version of the Iowa Gambling Task, while heart rate and skin conductance activity were continuously recorded. Children aged 16-18 learned to make advantageous choices over task blocks faster than the two younger age groups. Age differences were present for anticipation-related autonomic activity but not outcome-related autonomic activity. The results are interpreted vis-à-vis models of prefrontal cortex maturation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eveline A Crone
- Department of Psychology, Leiden University, The Netherlands.
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Chiu YC, Lin CH. Is deck C an advantageous deck in the Iowa Gambling Task? BEHAVIORAL AND BRAIN FUNCTIONS : BBF 2007; 3:37. [PMID: 17683599 PMCID: PMC1995208 DOI: 10.1186/1744-9081-3-37] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2007] [Accepted: 08/06/2007] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Dunn et al. performed a critical review identifying some problems in the Somatic Marker Hypothesis (SMH). Most of the arguments presented by Dunn focused on the insufficiencies for replication of skin conductance responses and somatic brain loops, but the study did not carefully reassess the core-task of SMH. In a related study, Lin and Chiu et al. identified a serious problem, namely the "prominent deck B phenomenon" in the original IGT. Building on this observation, Lin and Chiu also posited that deck C rather than deck A was preferred by normal decision makers due to good gain-loss frequency rather than good final-outcome. To verify this hypothesis, a modified IGT was designed that possessed high contrast of gain-loss value in each trial, with the aim of achieving a balance between decks A and C in terms of gain-loss frequency. Based on the basic assumption of IGT, participants should prefer deck C to deck A based on consideration of final-outcome. In contrast, based on the prediction of gain-loss frequency, participants should have roughly equal preferences for decks A and C. METHODS This investigation recruited 48 college students (24 males and 24 females) as participants. Two-stage IGT with high-contrast gain-loss value was launched to examine the deck C argument. Each participant completed the modified IGT twice and immediately afterwards was administered a questionnaire to assess their consciousness and final preferences following the game. RESULTS The experimental results supported the predictions regarding gain-loss frequency participants choose the deck C with nearly identical frequency to deck A, despite deck C having a better final outcome than deck A. The "sunken deck C" phenomenon is clearly identified in this version of IGT which achieves a balance in gain-loss frequency. Moreover, the "sunken deck C" phenomenon not only appears during the first stage, but also during the second stage of IGT. In addition, questionnaires indicated that normal decision makers disliked deck C at the consciousness (explicit) levels. CONCLUSION In the modified version of IGT, deck C was no longer preferred by normal decision makers, despite having a better long-term outcome than deck A. This study identified two problems in the original IGT. First, the gain-loss frequency between decks A and C is pseudo-balanced. Second, the covered phenomenon leads to most IGT related studies misinterpreting the effect of gain-loss frequency in situations involving long-term outcomes, and even leads to overstatement of the foresight of normal decision makers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yao-Chu Chiu
- Department of Psychology, Soochow University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Ching-Hung Lin
- Institute of Neuroscience, School of Life Science, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan
- Laboratory of Integrated Brain Research, Department of Medical Research & Education, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan
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