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Lempert KM, Parthasarathi T, Linhares S, Ruh N, Kable JW. Positive autobiographical memory recall does not influence temporal discounting: an internal meta-analysis of experimental studies. JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC PSYCHOLOGY 2024; 103:102730. [PMID: 38799018 PMCID: PMC11113695 DOI: 10.1016/j.joep.2024.102730] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/29/2024]
Abstract
People tend to discount the value of future rewards as the delay to receiving them increases. This phenomenon, known as temporal discounting, may underlie many impulsive behaviors, such as drug abuse and overeating. Given the potential role of temporal discounting in maladaptive behaviors, many efforts have been made to find experimental manipulations that reduce temporal discounting. One class of manipulations that has held some promise involves recalling positive autobiographical memories prior to making intertemporal choices. Just as imagining positive future events has been shown to reduce temporal discounting, a few studies have shown that recalling positive past events reduces temporal discounting, especially if memory retrieval evokes positive affective states, such as gratitude and nostalgia. However, we failed to replicate these findings. Here we present an internal meta-analysis combining data from 14 studies (n = 758) that involved within-subjects positive memory recall-based manipulations. In each study, temporal discounting was assessed using a monetary intertemporal choice task. The average effect size was not significantly different from zero. This finding helps elucidate the neurocognitive mechanisms of temporal discounting; whereas engaging the episodic memory system to imagine future events might promote more patience, engaging the episodic memory system to imagine past events does not.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Samantha Linhares
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104
| | - Natalia Ruh
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104
| | - Joseph W. Kable
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104
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2
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Patt VM, Strang C, Verfaellie M. The sign effect in temporal discounting does not require the hippocampus. Neuropsychologia 2024; 199:108888. [PMID: 38642846 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2024.108888] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2023] [Revised: 03/27/2024] [Accepted: 04/17/2024] [Indexed: 04/22/2024]
Abstract
When considering future outcomes, humans tend to discount gains more than losses. This phenomenon, referred to as the temporal discounting sign effect, is thought to result from the greater anticipated emotional impact of waiting for a negative outcome (dread) compared to waiting for a positive outcome (mixture of savoring and impatience). The impact of such anticipatory emotions has been proposed to rely on episodic future thinking. We evaluated this proposal by examining the presence and magnitude of a sign effect in the intertemporal decisions of individuals with hippocampal amnesia, who are severely impaired in their ability to engage in episodic mental simulation, and by comparing their patterns of choices to those of healthy controls. We also measured loss aversion, the tendency to assign greater value to losses compared to equivalent gains, to verify that any reduction in the sign effect in the hippocampal lesion group could not be explained by a group difference in loss aversion. Results showed that participants with hippocampal amnesia exhibited a sign effect, with less discounting of monetary losses compared to gains, that was similar in magnitude to that of controls. Loss aversion, albeit greater in the hippocampal compared to the control group, did not account for the sign effect. These results indicate that the sign effect does not depend on the integrity of hippocampally mediated episodic processes. They suggest instead that the impact of anticipatory emotions can be factored into decisions via semantic future thinking, drawing on non-contextual knowledge about oneself.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Mieke Verfaellie
- Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Boston University Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
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3
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Hudson JE, Grunevski S, Sebelius J, Yi R. Art-delivered episodic future thinking reduces delay discounting: A phase IIa proof-of-concept trial. JOURNAL OF SUBSTANCE USE AND ADDICTION TREATMENT 2024; 158:209255. [PMID: 38081541 DOI: 10.1016/j.josat.2023.209255] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2023] [Revised: 10/19/2023] [Accepted: 11/20/2023] [Indexed: 12/17/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION High rates of delay discounting (DD), or the preference for immediate rewards over delayed rewards, is associated with substance use disorder (SUD). Lower rates of DD predict better treatment outcomes, and thus strategies that reduce DD may support SUD recovery. The process of vividly imagining a future event, known as episodic future thinking (EFT), may be a particularly viable approach to reduce DD. Some limited research has examined delivery of EFT in treatment settings, using verbal prompts that are typical of studies in non-treatment settings. We propose that the creation of visual art represents a unique alignment of the purpose of EFT with an innovative delivery modality in treatment settings. METHODS This single arm, proof-of-concept trial evaluated art-delivered EFT (ArtEFT) to reduce DD in a sample of women (N = 39) in a residential SUD treatment center. Participants engaged in a single, 1-h ArtEFT session during which they engaged in EFT and created a visual representation using art materials. The study collected DD measures for hypothetical money ($50 and $1000 magnitude conditions) before and after ArtEFT. RESULTS Using area-under-the-curve (AUCord) as the index of DD, the study observed predicted changes following the ArtEFT session. The ANOVA revealed statistically significant main effects of both magnitude [F(1,38) = 11.184, p = .002] and time [F(1. 38) = 4.731, p = .036], with a non-significant interaction [F(1,38) = 3.821, p = .058]. CONCLUSION This study reveals promising preliminary indicators that art may be an effective modality to deliver EFT, with particular advantages for implementation given the popularity of art programming in SUD treatment programs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer E Hudson
- Cofrin Logan Center for Addiction Research and Treatment, University of Kansas, USA
| | | | - John Sebelius
- Cofrin Logan Center for Addiction Research and Treatment, University of Kansas, USA
| | - Richard Yi
- Cofrin Logan Center for Addiction Research and Treatment, University of Kansas, USA; Department of Psychology, University of Kansas, USA.
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4
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Sun HY, Jiang YP, Wang X, Cui LY, Sun HM. The effect of episodic foresight on intertemporal decision-making: the role of future self-continuity and perceived control. Cogn Process 2023; 24:173-186. [PMID: 36708402 DOI: 10.1007/s10339-023-01124-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2022] [Accepted: 01/11/2023] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
Abstract
To investigate the mechanism of episodic foresight of different valences on intertemporal decision-making, this study examined the mediating role of future self-continuity in the influence of episodic foresight on intertemporal decision-making and the moderating role of perceived control in two experiments. The results found that (1) future self-continuity mediated the effect of episodic foresight on individuals' intertemporal decision-making; and (2) perceived control moderated the indirect effect of episodic foresight on intertemporal decision-making through future self-continuity. Under low perceived control, individuals with positive episodic foresight had stronger future self-continuity and preferred future options, while individuals with negative episodic foresight had lower future self-continuity. In contrast, under high perceived control, individuals with different episodic foresight potencies did not show significant differences in their future self-continuity levels, but all showed higher levels and tended to choose the delayed option when faced with an intertemporal choice. From the perspective of the self-cognition, this study provided new insights into the relationship between episodic foresight and intertemporal decision-making and the psychological mechanisms of intertemporal decision-making.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hong-Yue Sun
- Department of Psychology, College of Education, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China.
| | - Yuan-Ping Jiang
- Department of Psychology, College of Education, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Xin Wang
- Department of Psychology, College of Education, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Li-Ying Cui
- Department of Psychology, College of Education, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China.
| | - Hong-Mei Sun
- College of Management, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China.
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5
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Ballance BC, Tuen YJ, Petrucci AS, Orwig W, Safi OK, Madan CR, Palombo DJ. Imagining emotional events benefits future-oriented decisions. Q J Exp Psychol (Hove) 2022; 75:2332-2348. [PMID: 35225089 PMCID: PMC9619259 DOI: 10.1177/17470218221086637] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2021] [Revised: 11/05/2021] [Accepted: 12/28/2021] [Indexed: 11/07/2023]
Abstract
How does imagining future events-whether positive or negative-influence our choices in the present? Prior work has shown the simulation of hypothetical future events, dubbed episodic future thinking, can alter the propensity to engage in delay discounting (the tendency to devalue future rewards) and does so in a valence-specific manner. Some research shows that positive episodic future thinking reduces delay discounting, whereas negative future thinking augments it. However, more recent research indicates that both positive and negative episodic future thinking reduce delay discounting, suggesting an effect of episodic future thinking that is independent of valence. In this study, we sought to replicate and extend these latter findings. Here, participants (N = 604; N = 572 after exclusions) completed an online study. In the baseline task, participants completed a delay discounting task. In the experimental task, they engaged in episodic future thinking before completing a second delay discounting task. Participants were randomly assigned to engage in either positive, neutral, or negative episodic future thinking. In accordance with Bulley et al., we found that episodic future thinking, regardless of valence, reduced delay discounting. Although episodic future thinking shifted decision-making in all conditions, the effect was stronger when participants engaged in positive episodic future thinking, even after accounting for personal relevance and vividness of imagined events. These findings suggest that episodic future thinking may promote future-oriented choices by contextualising the future, and this effect is further strengthened when the future is tied to positive emotion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Braedon C Ballance
- Department of Psychology, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Young Ji Tuen
- Department of Psychology, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Aria S Petrucci
- Department of Psychology, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - William Orwig
- Department of Psychology, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | - Omran K Safi
- Department of Psychology, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
| | | | - Daniela J Palombo
- Department of Psychology, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
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Brown JM, Stein JS. Putting prospection into practice: Methodological considerations in the use of episodic future thinking to reduce delay discounting and maladaptive health behaviors. Front Public Health 2022; 10:1020171. [PMID: 36408004 PMCID: PMC9669959 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.1020171] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2022] [Accepted: 10/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
In recent years, episodic future thinking (EFT) has emerged as a promising behavioral intervention to reduce delay discounting or maladaptive health behaviors; however, considerable methodological heterogeneity in methods for eliciting engagement in EFT has been observed in prior research. In this narrative review, we briefly describe methods for generating EFT cues, the content of EFT cues, common control conditions for experiments utilizing EFT, and considerations for cue delivery and implementation. Where possible, we make suggestions for current best practices in each category while identifying gaps in knowledge and potential areas of future research. Finally, we conclude by using the NIH Stage model to better frame the current state of the literature on EFT and propose gaps to be addressed if EFT is to be both an efficacious and effective behavioral intervention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeremiah Michael Brown
- Fralin Biomedical Research Institute, Virginia Tech Carilion, Roanoke, VA, United States
- Department of Human Nutrition, Foods, and Exercise, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, United States
| | - Jeffrey Scott Stein
- Fralin Biomedical Research Institute, Virginia Tech Carilion, Roanoke, VA, United States
- Department of Human Nutrition, Foods, and Exercise, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, United States
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7
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Guo Y, Wu H, Li Z, Zhao L, Feng T. Episodic future thinking predicts differences in delay discounting: The mediating role of hippocampal structure. Front Psychol 2022; 13:992245. [PMID: 36312178 PMCID: PMC9596978 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.992245] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2022] [Accepted: 09/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
A growing body of evidence suggests that engagement in episodic future thinking (EFT) could reduce delay discounting rates. However, little is known about whether individual differences in the ability of EFT are associated with differences in delay discounting in young adults. In the present study, this association was tested in healthy college students (n = 106, 19.98 ± 1.56 years), and the neural basis underlying this association was also examined using voxel-based morphometry (VBM) method. Behavioral analysis indicated that individual differences in EFT ability can significantly negatively predict discounting rates. VBM analysis first revealed that the EFT score positively correlated with gray matter volume (GMV) of a cluster in hippocampus, while negatively correlated with GMV of a cluster in rostral anterior cingulate cortex. We also found the GMV of a cluster in the mPFC was positively correlated with delay discounting. ROI analysis further revealed that individual differences in delay discounting could be reliably predicted by the GMV in the hippocampus and mPFC. The final mediation analysis showed that the GMV of the hippocampus plays a significant mediating role in the association between EFT and delay discounting, and the indirect effect of the hippocampal GMV accounts for 33.2% of the total effect. Our results suggest that individuals’ EFT ability may be an important determinant of differences in delay discounting, and highlight the hippocampal structure as a neural biomarker for explaining the association between EFT ability and delay discounting.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yiqun Guo
- School of Innovation and Entrepreneurship Education, Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications, Chongqing, China
- School of Bioinformatics, Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications, Chongqing, China
- Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Chongqing, China
- *Correspondence: Yiqun Guo, ; Tingyong Feng,
| | - Huimin Wu
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| | - Zhangyong Li
- School of Bioinformatics, Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications, Chongqing, China
| | - Le Zhao
- Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Zhuhai, China
| | - Tingyong Feng
- Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Chongqing, China
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
- *Correspondence: Yiqun Guo, ; Tingyong Feng,
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8
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Wardell V, Grilli MD, Palombo DJ. Simulating the best and worst of times: the powers and perils of emotional simulation. Memory 2022; 30:1212-1225. [PMID: 35708272 DOI: 10.1080/09658211.2022.2088796] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
We are remarkably capable of simulating events that we have never experienced. These simulated events often paint an emotional picture to behold, such as the best and worst possible outcomes that we might face. This review synthesises dispersed literature exploring the role of emotion in simulation. Drawing from work that suggests that simulations can influence our preferences, decision-making, and prosociality, we argue for a critical role of emotion in informing the consequences of simulation. We further unpack burgeoning evidence suggesting that the effects of emotional simulation transcend the laboratory. We propose avenues by which emotional simulation may be harnessed for both personal and collective good in applied contexts. We conclude by offering important future directions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victoria Wardell
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Matthew D Grilli
- Department of Psychology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - Daniela J Palombo
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
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9
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Ruhi-Williams P, King MJ, Stein JS, Bickel WK. Episodic Future Thinking about Smoking-Related Illness: A Preliminary Investigation of Effects on Delay Discounting, Cigarette Craving, and Cigarette Demand. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2022; 19:ijerph19127136. [PMID: 35742385 PMCID: PMC9223435 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph19127136] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2022] [Revised: 06/02/2022] [Accepted: 06/03/2022] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
Cigarette smokers show excessive delay discounting (devaluation of delayed rewards), which may contribute to tobacco use disorder. Episodic future thinking (EFT), or mental simulation of future events, has been shown to reduce both delay discounting and laboratory smoking behavior. Traditionally, EFT involves vividly imagining positive future events. In this preliminary investigation, we examined the effects of EFT specifically about smoking-related illness (SRI) on delay discounting, cigarette craving, and behavioral economic demand for cigarettes. In a 2 (episodic thinking) × 2 (smoking-related illness) factorial design, we randomly assigned smokers from Amazon Mechanical Turk to one of two EFT groups: EFT alone or EFT + SRI; or one of two episodic “recent” thinking (ERT) control groups: ERT alone or ERT + SRI. Both EFT groups generated and imagined positive future events, while both ERT groups imagined real events from the recent past. Both EFT + SRI and ERT + SRI groups imagined these events while also experiencing SRI symptoms. Participants then completed assessments of delay discounting, cigarette craving, and measures of cigarette demand. We observed significant main effects on delay discounting of both EFT (reduced discounting) and SRI (increased discounting), as well as significant main effects of both EFT and SRI on cigarette craving (in both cases, reduced craving). No significant main effect of EFT was observed on cigarette demand measures, although we observed a main effect of SRI on quantity of demand when cigarettes were free (Q0) (reduced demand). In all analyses, we observed no significant EFT × SRT interactions, indicating that these variables operate independently of one another. These methods may be adapted for use in clinical treatment to aid in smoking cessation interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Perisa Ruhi-Williams
- Fralin Biomedical Research Institute, 1 Riverside Circle, Roanoke, VA 24016, USA; (P.R.-W.); (M.J.K.); (W.K.B.)
- Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine, 4 Riverside Circle, Roanoke, VA 24016, USA
- Irvine Medical Center, University of California, Orange, CA 92697, USA
| | - Mary J. King
- Fralin Biomedical Research Institute, 1 Riverside Circle, Roanoke, VA 24016, USA; (P.R.-W.); (M.J.K.); (W.K.B.)
- Graduate Program in Translational Biology, Medicine and Health, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24016, USA
| | - Jeffrey S. Stein
- Fralin Biomedical Research Institute, 1 Riverside Circle, Roanoke, VA 24016, USA; (P.R.-W.); (M.J.K.); (W.K.B.)
- Correspondence:
| | - Warren K. Bickel
- Fralin Biomedical Research Institute, 1 Riverside Circle, Roanoke, VA 24016, USA; (P.R.-W.); (M.J.K.); (W.K.B.)
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10
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Chen Z, Feng T. Neural connectome features of procrastination: Current progress and future direction. Brain Cogn 2022; 161:105882. [PMID: 35679698 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandc.2022.105882] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2022] [Revised: 05/23/2022] [Accepted: 05/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Procrastination refers to an irrationally delay for intended courses of action despite of anticipating a negative consequence due to this delay. Previous studies tried to reveal the neural substrates of procrastination in terms of connectome-based biomarkers. Based on this, we proposed a unified triple brain network model for procrastination and pinpointed out what challenges we are facing in understanding neural mechanism of procrastination. Specifically, based on neuroanatomical features, the unified triple brain network model proposed that connectome-based underpinning of procrastination could be ascribed to the abnormalities of self-control network (i.e., dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, DLPFC), emotion-regulation network (i.e., orbital frontal cortex, OFC), and episodic prospection network (i.e., para-hippocampus cortex, PHC). Moreover, based on the brain functional features, procrastination had been attributed to disruptive neural circuits on FPN (frontoparietal network)-SCN (subcortical network) and FPN-SAN (salience network), which led us to hypothesize the crucial roles of interplay between these networks on procrastination in unified triple brain network model. Despite of these findings, poor interpretability and computational model limited further understanding for procrastination from theoretical and neural perspectives. On balance, the current study provided an overview to show current progress on the connectome-based biomarkers for procrastination, and proposed the integrative neurocognitive model of procrastination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhiyi Chen
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China; Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| | - Tingyong Feng
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China; Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Southwest University, Chongqing, China.
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11
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Ye JY, Ding QY, Cui JF, Liu Z, Jia LX, Qin XJ, Xu H, Wang Y. A meta-analysis of the effects of episodic future thinking on delay discounting. Q J Exp Psychol (Hove) 2021; 75:1876-1891. [PMID: 34841982 DOI: 10.1177/17470218211066282] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Delay discounting (DD) refers to the phenomenon in which the subjective value of future rewards is reduced over time. There are individual differences in the DD rate, and increased discounting has been observed in those with various psychiatric disorders. Episodic future thinking (EFT) is the act of vividly imagining events that may happen in the future. Studies have shown that EFT could reduce DD, although inconsistent results have been reported. The aim of this meta-analysis was to clarify the efficacy with which EFT reduces DD and to identify potential moderators. Forty-seven studies (including 63 contrasts) were included in the final analysis. EFT was found to significantly reduce DD (Hedges' g = 0.52). Moderator analysis showed that positive EFT (g = 0.64) was more effective in reducing DD than EFT with the valence not specifically mentioned (g = 0.28) and EFT with neutral or negative valence (g = -0.03). In addition, several factors related to the control task and DD task were related to the efficacy of EFT to reduce DD. These findings have implications for using EFT to reduce DD in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jun-Yan Ye
- Neuropsychology and Applied Cognitive Neuroscience Lab, CAS Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Beijing, China.,Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Qing-Yu Ding
- Teachers' College, Beijing Union University, Beijing, China
| | - Ji-Fang Cui
- Research Center for Information and Statistics, National Institute of Education Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Zhe Liu
- Teachers' College, Beijing Union University, Beijing, China
| | - Lu-Xia Jia
- Neuropsychology and Applied Cognitive Neuroscience Lab, CAS Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Beijing, China.,Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Xiao-Jing Qin
- Neuropsychology and Applied Cognitive Neuroscience Lab, CAS Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Beijing, China.,Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Hua Xu
- Teachers' College, Beijing Union University, Beijing, China
| | - Ya Wang
- Neuropsychology and Applied Cognitive Neuroscience Lab, CAS Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Beijing, China.,Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
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12
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The Influence of Episodic Future Thinking and Graphic Warning Labels on Delay Discounting and Cigarette Demand. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2021; 18:ijerph182312637. [PMID: 34886370 PMCID: PMC8656814 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph182312637] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2021] [Revised: 11/23/2021] [Accepted: 11/25/2021] [Indexed: 01/23/2023]
Abstract
Delay discounting and operant demand are two behavioral economic constructs that tend to covary, by degree, with cigarette smoking status. Given historically robust associations between adverse health outcomes of smoking, a strong preference for immediate reinforcement (measured with delay discounting), and excessive motivation to smoke cigarettes (measured with operant demand), researchers have made numerous attempts to attenuate the extent to which behaviors corresponding to these constructs acutely appear in smokers. One approach is episodic future thinking, which can reportedly increase the impact of future events on present decision making as well as reduce the reinforcing value of cigarettes. Graphic cigarette pack warning labels may also reduce smoking by increased future orientation. Experiment 1 evaluated the combined effects of episodic future thinking and graphic warning labels on delay discounting; Experiment 2 evaluated solely the effects of episodic future thinking on delay discounting and operant demand. We observed no statistically significant effects of episodic future thinking when combined with graphic warning labels or when assessed on its own. These results serve as a call for further research on the boundary conditions of experimental techniques reported to alter behaviors associated with cigarette smoking.
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13
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O’Connor RJ, Carl E, Shevorykin A, Stein JS, Vantucci D, Liskiewicz A, Bensch L, Thorner H, Marion M, Hyland A, Sheffer CE. Internal Validity of Two Promising Methods of Altering Temporal Orientation among Cigarette Smokers. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2021; 18:ijerph182312601. [PMID: 34886327 PMCID: PMC8656890 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph182312601] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2021] [Revised: 11/19/2021] [Accepted: 11/22/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Relapse to smoking continues to be among the most urgent global health concerns. Novel, accessible, and minimally invasive treatments to aid in smoking cessation are likely to improve the reach and efficacy of smoking cessation treatment. Encouraging prospection by decreasing delay discounting (DD) is a new therapeutic target in the treatment of smoking cessation. Two early-stage interventions, delivered remotely and intended to increase prospection, decrease DD and promote cessation are Episodic Future Thinking (EFT) and Future Thinking Priming (FTP). EFT and FTP have demonstrated at least modest reductions in delay discounting, but understanding whether these interventions are internally valid (i.e., are accomplishing the stated intention) is key. This study examined the internal validity of EFT and FTP. Participants (n = 20) seeking to quit smoking were randomly assigned to active or control conditions of EFT and FTP. Linguistic Inquiry Word Count (LIWC2015) was used to examine the language participants used while engaged in the tasks. Results revealed significant differences in the language participants used in the active and control conditions. Women employed more words than men, but no other demographic differences were found in language. The active conditions for both tasks showed a greater emphasis on future orientation. Risk-avoidance was significantly higher in the active vs. control condition for EFT. Remote delivery of both EFT and FTP was valid and feasible as participants adhered to instructions in the remote prompts, and trends in DD were in the expected directions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard J. O’Connor
- Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY 14203, USA; (R.J.O.); (A.S.); (D.V.); (A.L.); (L.B.); (H.T.); (M.M.); (A.H.); (C.E.S.)
| | - Ellen Carl
- Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY 14203, USA; (R.J.O.); (A.S.); (D.V.); (A.L.); (L.B.); (H.T.); (M.M.); (A.H.); (C.E.S.)
- Correspondence:
| | - Alina Shevorykin
- Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY 14203, USA; (R.J.O.); (A.S.); (D.V.); (A.L.); (L.B.); (H.T.); (M.M.); (A.H.); (C.E.S.)
| | - Jeffrey S. Stein
- Center for Transformative Research on Health Behaviors, Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC, 1 Riverside Circle, Roanoke, VA 24016, USA;
| | - Darian Vantucci
- Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY 14203, USA; (R.J.O.); (A.S.); (D.V.); (A.L.); (L.B.); (H.T.); (M.M.); (A.H.); (C.E.S.)
| | - Amylynn Liskiewicz
- Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY 14203, USA; (R.J.O.); (A.S.); (D.V.); (A.L.); (L.B.); (H.T.); (M.M.); (A.H.); (C.E.S.)
| | - Lindsey Bensch
- Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY 14203, USA; (R.J.O.); (A.S.); (D.V.); (A.L.); (L.B.); (H.T.); (M.M.); (A.H.); (C.E.S.)
| | - Hannah Thorner
- Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY 14203, USA; (R.J.O.); (A.S.); (D.V.); (A.L.); (L.B.); (H.T.); (M.M.); (A.H.); (C.E.S.)
| | - Matthew Marion
- Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY 14203, USA; (R.J.O.); (A.S.); (D.V.); (A.L.); (L.B.); (H.T.); (M.M.); (A.H.); (C.E.S.)
| | - Andrew Hyland
- Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY 14203, USA; (R.J.O.); (A.S.); (D.V.); (A.L.); (L.B.); (H.T.); (M.M.); (A.H.); (C.E.S.)
| | - Christine E. Sheffer
- Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY 14203, USA; (R.J.O.); (A.S.); (D.V.); (A.L.); (L.B.); (H.T.); (M.M.); (A.H.); (C.E.S.)
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14
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Opriş AM, Cheie L, Visu-Petra L. Back to the future: relating the development of episodic future thinking to cognitive and affective individual differences and to motivational relevance in preschoolers. Memory 2021; 29:362-378. [PMID: 33706674 DOI: 10.1080/09658211.2021.1896734] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
Episodic future thinking (EFT) represents the ability to mentally simulate scenarios that will occur in our personal future. In the current study, we used the item choice paradigm, which puts chidren in a problematic situation and requires them to envision a solution by selecting one of various items. This ability was assessed in a sample of 92 preschoolers (3-6 years old), taking into account individual differences in age, gender, cognitive (verbal abilities, EFT memory) and affective (anxiety) factors, as well as contextual factors (motivational relevance). Findings indicate developmental progress in preschoolers' foresight and in their retrospective memory for the item choice problems. The motivational valence of the EFT task played a significant role, as children performed better in the motivationally positive condition, as compared to the neutral and negative ones. However, older children had better performance than younger ones on the motivationally aversive tasks, becoming comparable to their performance in the motivationally appetitive condition. Finally, higher social anxiety was negatively related to children's EFT performance in the aversive condition, when they anticipated negative social exposure. In conclusion, EFT was explained by age-related improvements, the motivational valence of the situation and by individual differences in social anxiety, which is highly relevant for educational and therapeutic practices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra M Opriş
- Research in Individual Differences and Legal Psychology (RIDDLE) Lab, Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
| | - Lavinia Cheie
- Research in Individual Differences and Legal Psychology (RIDDLE) Lab, Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
| | - Laura Visu-Petra
- Research in Individual Differences and Legal Psychology (RIDDLE) Lab, Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
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15
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Jia L, Liu Z, Cui J, Ding Q, Ye J, Liu L, Xu H, Wang Y. Future thinking is related to lower delay discounting than recent thinking, regardless of the magnitude of the reward, in individuals with schizotypy. AUSTRALIAN PSYCHOLOGIST 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/ap.12460] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Lu‐xia Jia
- Neuropsychology and Applied Cognitive Neuroscience Lab, CAS Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Beijing, China,
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China,
| | - Zhe Liu
- Teachers' College, Beijing Union University, Beijing, China,
| | - Ji‐fang Cui
- Research Center for Information and Statistics, National Institute of Education Sciences, Beijing, China,
| | - Qing‐yu Ding
- Teachers' College, Beijing Union University, Beijing, China,
| | - Jun‐yan Ye
- Neuropsychology and Applied Cognitive Neuroscience Lab, CAS Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Beijing, China,
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China,
| | - Lu‐lu Liu
- Brain and Mind Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia,
- School of Psychology, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia,
| | - Hua Xu
- Teachers' College, Beijing Union University, Beijing, China,
| | - Ya Wang
- Neuropsychology and Applied Cognitive Neuroscience Lab, CAS Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Beijing, China,
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China,
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16
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Stockdale E, Sanders M. Is future self‐relevance necessary to increase saving for retirement? A replication study. JOURNAL OF APPLIED SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/jasp.12673] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Emma Stockdale
- Department of Political Economy King’s College London London UK
| | - Michael Sanders
- Department of Political Economy King’s College London London UK
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17
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Manuel AL, Roquet D, Landin-Romero R, Kumfor F, Ahmed RM, Hodges JR, Piguet O. Interactions between decision-making and emotion in behavioral-variant frontotemporal dementia and Alzheimer's disease. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2020; 15:681-694. [PMID: 32613246 PMCID: PMC7393308 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsaa085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2020] [Revised: 05/16/2020] [Accepted: 06/15/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Negative and positive emotions are known to shape decision-making toward more or less impulsive responses, respectively. Decision-making and emotion processing are underpinned by shared brain regions including the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) and the amygdala. How these processes interact at the behavioral and brain levels is still unclear. We used a lesion model to address this question. Study participants included individuals diagnosed with behavioral-variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD, n = 18), who typically present deficits in decision-making/emotion processing and atrophy of the vmPFC, individuals with Alzheimer’s disease (AD, n = 12) who present with atrophy in limbic structures and age-matched healthy controls (CTRL, n = 15). Prior to each choice on the delay discounting task participants were cued with a positive, negative or neutral picture and asked to vividly imagine witnessing the event. As hypothesized, our findings showed that bvFTD patients were more impulsive than AD patients and CTRL and did not show any emotion-related modulation of delay discounting rate. In contrast, AD patients showed increased impulsivity when primed by negative emotion. This increased impulsivity was associated with reduced integrity of bilateral amygdala in AD but not in bvFTD. Altogether, our results indicate that decision-making and emotion interact at the level of the amygdala supporting findings from animal studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aurélie L Manuel
- School of Psychology, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.,Brain & Mind Centre, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.,ARC Centre of Excellence in Cognition & its Disorders, Sydney, Australia.,Laboratory for Research in Neuroimaging LREN, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Lausanne University Hospital and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Daniel Roquet
- School of Psychology, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.,Brain & Mind Centre, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.,ARC Centre of Excellence in Cognition & its Disorders, Sydney, Australia
| | - Ramon Landin-Romero
- School of Psychology, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.,Brain & Mind Centre, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.,ARC Centre of Excellence in Cognition & its Disorders, Sydney, Australia
| | - Fiona Kumfor
- School of Psychology, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.,Brain & Mind Centre, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.,ARC Centre of Excellence in Cognition & its Disorders, Sydney, Australia
| | - Rebekah M Ahmed
- Brain & Mind Centre, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.,ARC Centre of Excellence in Cognition & its Disorders, Sydney, Australia.,Clinical Medical School, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - John R Hodges
- Brain & Mind Centre, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.,ARC Centre of Excellence in Cognition & its Disorders, Sydney, Australia.,Clinical Medical School, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Olivier Piguet
- School of Psychology, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.,Brain & Mind Centre, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.,ARC Centre of Excellence in Cognition & its Disorders, Sydney, Australia
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18
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Zhang R, Chen Z, Xu T, Zhang L, Feng T. The overlapping region in right hippocampus accounting for the link between trait anxiety and procrastination. Neuropsychologia 2020; 146:107571. [PMID: 32721496 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2020.107571] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2020] [Revised: 07/21/2020] [Accepted: 07/22/2020] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Procrastination refers as putting off an intended course of action voluntarily despite expecting to be worse off for the delay, ubiquitously causing troubles across life domains. Prior studies revealed the positive correlation between trait anxiety and procrastination. However, little was known about the neural substrates responsible for the relation between trait anxiety and procrastination. To address this issue, the current study explored the neural basis underlying how trait anxiety linked to procrastination using the voxel-based morphometry (VBM) method across two independent samples. In line with previous studies, the behavioral result confirmed that trait anxiety was positively correlated with procrastination (sample 1). The VBM analyses showed that trait anxiety and procrastination shared the common neural underpinnings in the right hippocampus (sample 1). To verify the reliability of results, the overlapping region in the right hippocampus was defined as a region of interest (ROI) to extract the GM volumes of this area in sample 2. Furthermore, the mediation analysis showed that the GM volumes in the overlapping region played a mediating role in the relationship between trait anxiety and procrastination (sample 2). These results suggested the shared anatomical structure in the right hippocampus, a region implicated in episodic prospection, could be responsible for how trait anxiety related to procrastination. Taken together, present findings yielded insights into the role of episodic prospection accounting for the relationship between trait anxiety and procrastination from a neural basis perspective.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rong Zhang
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| | - Zhiyi Chen
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| | - Ting Xu
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| | - Libin Zhang
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| | - Tingyong Feng
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China; Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, China.
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19
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Bulley A, Schacter DL. Deliberating trade-offs with the future. Nat Hum Behav 2020; 4:238-247. [PMID: 32184495 PMCID: PMC7147875 DOI: 10.1038/s41562-020-0834-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2019] [Accepted: 02/05/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Many fundamental choices in life are intertemporal: they involve trade-offs between sooner and later outcomes. In recent years there has been a surge of interest into how people make intertemporal decisions, given that such decisions are ubiquitous in everyday life and central in domains from substance use to climate change action. While it is clear that people make decisions according to rules, intuitions and habits, they also commonly deliberate over their options, thinking through potential outcomes and reflecting on their own preferences. In this Perspective, we bring to bear recent research into the higher-order capacities that underpin deliberation-particularly those that enable people to think about the future (prospection) and their own thinking (metacognition)-to shed light on intertemporal decision-making. We show how a greater appreciation for these mechanisms of deliberation promises to advance our understanding of intertemporal decision-making and unify a wide range of otherwise disparate choice phenomena.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam Bulley
- Department of Psychology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA.
- The University of Sydney, School of Psychology and Brain and Mind Centre, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
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20
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Neural substrates underlying episodic future thinking: A voxel-based morphometry study. Neuropsychologia 2020; 138:107255. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2019.107255] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2019] [Revised: 10/28/2019] [Accepted: 11/05/2019] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
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21
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Ciaramelli E, Sellitto M, Tosarelli G, di Pellegrino G. Imagining Events Alternative to the Present Can Attenuate Delay Discounting. Front Behav Neurosci 2019; 13:269. [PMID: 31920579 PMCID: PMC6923661 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2019.00269] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2019] [Accepted: 11/26/2019] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Previous studies have shown that delay discounting (DD), the tendency to prefer smaller-immediate to larger-delayed rewards, decreases following vivid imagination of future events. Here, we test the hypothesis that imagining complex events alternative to direct (perceptual) experience, whether located in the future, the past, or even the present, would reduce DD. Participants (N = 250) imagined future events (Future condition), remembered past events (Past condition), imagined present events (Present-imagine condition), or reported on the current events (Present-attend condition), and then made a series of intertemporal choices about money and food. Compared to attending to the present, imagining the future reduced DD, but this only held for individuals who claimed vivid pre-experiencing of future events. Importantly, a similar attenuation of DD was found in the Past and Present-imagine conditions, suggesting that a shift in perspective from the perceptual present towards mentally constructed experience can downplay the appraisal of immediate rewards in favor of larger-delayed rewards, regardless of the location of the imagined experience in subjective time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elisa Ciaramelli
- Department of Psychology, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
- The Centre for Studies and Research in Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Bologna, Cesena, Italy
| | - Manuela Sellitto
- Department of Comparative Psychology, Institute of Experimental Psychology, Heinrich-Heine University of Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Giulia Tosarelli
- The Centre for Studies and Research in Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Bologna, Cesena, Italy
| | - Giuseppe di Pellegrino
- Department of Psychology, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
- The Centre for Studies and Research in Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Bologna, Cesena, Italy
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22
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Manuel AL, Murray NWG, Piguet O. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) over vmPFC modulates interactions between reward and emotion in delay discounting. Sci Rep 2019; 9:18735. [PMID: 31822732 PMCID: PMC6904687 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-55157-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2019] [Accepted: 11/20/2019] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Delay discounting requires computing trade-offs between immediate-small rewards and later-larger rewards. Negative and positive emotions shift decisions towards more or less impulsive responses, respectively. Models have conceptualized this trade-off by describing an interplay between “emotional” and “rational” processes, with the former involved during immediate choices and relying on the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC), and the latter involved in long-term choices and relying on the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC). Whether stimulation of the vmPFC modulates emotion-induced delay discounting remains unclear. We applied tDCS over the vmPFC in 20 healthy individuals during a delay discounting task following an emotional (positive, negative) or neutral induction. Our results showed that cathodal tDCS increased impulsivity after positive emotions in high impulsivity trials. For low impulsivity trials, anodal tDCS decreased impulsivity following neutral induction compared with emotional induction. Our findings demonstrate that the vmPFC integrates reward and emotion most prominently in situations of increased impulsivity, whereas when higher cognitive control is required the vmPFC appears to be less engaged, possibly due to recruitment of the dlPFC. Understanding how stimulation and emotion influence decision-making at the behavioural and neural levels holds promise to develop interventions to reduce impulsivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aurélie L Manuel
- The University of Sydney, School of Psychology, Sydney, Australia. .,The University of Sydney, Brain & Mind Centre, Sydney, Australia. .,ARC Centre of Excellence in Cognition & its Disorders, Sydney, Australia.
| | - Nicholas W G Murray
- The University of Sydney, Brain & Mind Centre, Sydney, Australia.,Macquarie University, School of Psychology, Sydney, Australia
| | - Olivier Piguet
- The University of Sydney, School of Psychology, Sydney, Australia.,The University of Sydney, Brain & Mind Centre, Sydney, Australia.,ARC Centre of Excellence in Cognition & its Disorders, Sydney, Australia
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23
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Xu T, Chen Z, Feng T. The preference for future outcomes correlates with the temporal variability of functional connectivity among brain regions. Behav Brain Res 2019; 375:112111. [PMID: 31404558 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2019.112111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2019] [Revised: 07/19/2019] [Accepted: 07/23/2019] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
People inevitably make decisions between short-term and long-term consequences across domains like education, health and economics. In this kind of decision, the tendency to discount the value of later-larger rewards with increasing delays is defined as delay discounting (DD). A recent review has suggested that three neural systems which respectively responsible for valuation, prospection and cognitive control (e.g., ventromedial prefrontal cortex [vmPFC], hippocampus, precuneus and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex [dlPFC]) could interact with each other flexibly to have impacts on DD. However, to date, there is little attention paid on the connection between the DD and the dynamic interaction of brain regions.To tackle this issue, we investigate the relationship between the DD and the time-varying connectivity among brain regions in two samples of young adults. Results in sample 1 found that the DD was negatively correlated with the temporal variability of functional connectivity [FC] between the vmPFC and precuneus, and between the vmPFC and the left superior frontal gyrus. And the temporal variabilities of FC between the ventral striatum and right dlPFC, and between the ventral striatum and dorsomedial prefrontal cortex were also negatively related to DD. Furthermore, the main results were well replicated and validated in another sample using different analysis parameters. Overall, our findings reveal that temporal fluctuation of FC within default mode and fronto-striatal circuits can favor for prospecting future, cognitive control and valuation of delayed incentives, and this flexible connectivity patterns generally have association with preference for future outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ting Xu
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| | - Zhiyi Chen
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| | - Tingyong Feng
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China; Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Chongqing, China.
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24
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Calluso C, Tosoni A, Cannito L, Committeri G. Concreteness and emotional valence of episodic future thinking (EFT) independently affect the dynamics of intertemporal decisions. PLoS One 2019; 14:e0217224. [PMID: 31136620 PMCID: PMC6538244 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0217224] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2018] [Accepted: 05/07/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
During intertemporal decisions, the value of future rewards decreases as a function of the delay of its receipt (temporal discounting, TD). Since high discount rates have been associated with a series of problematic behaviours and clinical conditions, current research has focused on possible modulators of TD. Specifically, a reduction of individual discount rates has been shown during episodic future thinking (EFT), wherein time intervals are anchored to personal future events. However, it is not entirely clear whether this effect is mediated by a change in the representation of future events (i.e., from abstract to concrete) or by a positive-emotion modulation. Here, we investigated this issue by manipulating the valence of the EFT (i.e., using negative, neutral and positive episodic tags), and by collecting explicit and implicit measures of behaviour. The results showed a significant reduction of TD in all the three emotional conditions compared to the baseline, with differences among them, thus suggesting the existence of a cumulative effect of the concreteness and affective components of the EFT. The analyses of implicit measures additionally revealed that this effect was mediated by a simultaneous increase/decrease of attraction toward the delayed/immediate alternative. Finally, these effects appeared to be modulated by participants' baseline discounting preferences. These findings provide important insights on clinical applications in reward-related disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cinzia Calluso
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, Gabriele d’Annunzio University, and Institute for Advanced Biomedical Technologies (ITAB), Chieti Scalo, Italy
- Department of Business and Management, LUISS Guido Carli University, Rome, Italy
- * E-mail:
| | - Annalisa Tosoni
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, Gabriele d’Annunzio University, and Institute for Advanced Biomedical Technologies (ITAB), Chieti Scalo, Italy
| | - Loreta Cannito
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, Gabriele d’Annunzio University, and Institute for Advanced Biomedical Technologies (ITAB), Chieti Scalo, Italy
| | - Giorgia Committeri
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, Gabriele d’Annunzio University, and Institute for Advanced Biomedical Technologies (ITAB), Chieti Scalo, Italy
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25
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Bulley A, Miloyan B, Pepper GV, Gullo MJ, Henry JD, Suddendorf T. Cuing both positive and negative episodic foresight reduces delay discounting but does not affect risk-taking. Q J Exp Psychol (Hove) 2019; 72:1998-2017. [DOI: 10.1177/1747021818819777] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Humans frequently create mental models of the future, allowing outcomes to be inferred in advance of their occurrence. Recent evidence suggests that imagining positive future events reduces delay discounting (the devaluation of reward with time until its receipt), while imagining negative future events may increase it. Here, using a sample of 297 participants, we experimentally assess the effects of cued episodic simulation of positive and negative future scenarios on decision-making in the context of both delay discounting (monetary choice questionnaire) and risk-taking (balloon-analogue risk task). Participants discounted the future less when cued to imagine positive and negative future scenarios than they did when cued to engage in control neutral imagery. There were no effects of experimental condition on risk-taking. Thus, although these results replicate previous findings suggesting episodic future simulation can reduce delay discounting, they indicate that this effect is not dependent on the valence of the thoughts, and does not generalise to all other forms of “impulsive” decision-making. We discuss various interpretations of these results, and suggest avenues for further research on the role of prospection in decision-making.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam Bulley
- School of Psychology, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, Australia
| | - Beyon Miloyan
- School of Psychology and Health Sciences, Federation University Australia, Ballarat, VIC, Australia
| | | | - Matthew J Gullo
- Centre for Youth Substance Abuse Research, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, Australia
| | - Julie D Henry
- School of Psychology, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, Australia
| | - Thomas Suddendorf
- School of Psychology, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, Australia
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26
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Zhang S, Liu P, Feng T. To do it now or later: The cognitive mechanisms and neural substrates underlying procrastination. WILEY INTERDISCIPLINARY REVIEWS. COGNITIVE SCIENCE 2019; 10:e1492. [PMID: 30638308 DOI: 10.1002/wcs.1492] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2018] [Revised: 12/09/2018] [Accepted: 12/18/2018] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Procrastination, the voluntary and irrational delay of an intended course of action, has troubled individuals and society extensively. Various studies have been conducted to explain why people procrastinate and to explore the neural substrates of procrastination. First, research has identified many contributing factors to procrastination. Specifically, task aversiveness, future incentives, and time delay of these incentives have been confirmed as three prominent task characteristics that affect procrastination. On the other hand, self-control and impulsivity have been identified as two most predictive traits of procrastination. After identifying contributing factors, two important theories proposed to explain procrastination by integrating these factors are reviewed. Specifically, an emotion-regulation perspective regards procrastination as a form of self-regulation failure that reflects giving priority to short-term mood repair over achieving long-term goals. However, temporal motivation theory explains why people's motivation to act increases when time approaches a deadline with time discounting effect. To further specify the cognitive mechanism underlying procrastination, this study proposes a novel theoretical model which clarifies how the motivation to act and the motivation to avoid vary differently when delaying a task, explaining why people decide not to act now but are willing to act in the future. Of note, few recent studies have investigated neural correlates of procrastination. Specifically, it was revealed that individual differences in procrastination are correlated with structural abnormalities and altered spontaneous metabolism in the parahippocampal cortex and the prefrontal cortex, which might contribute to procrastination through episodic future thinking or memory and emotion regulation, respectively. This article is categorized under: Economics > Individual Decision Making Psychology > Theory and Methods Psychology > Emotion and Motivation Psychology > Reasoning and Decision Making.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shunmin Zhang
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
| | - Peiwei Liu
- Department of Psychology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida
| | - Tingyong Feng
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China.,Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
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27
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O'Donnell S, Daniel TO, Koroschetz J, Kilanowski C, Otminski A, Bickel WK, Epstein LH. Do process simulations during episodic future thinking enhance the reduction of delay discounting for middle income participants and those living in poverty? JOURNAL OF BEHAVIORAL DECISION MAKING 2018; 32:231-240. [PMID: 34334945 DOI: 10.1002/bdm.2108] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Two studies examined whether episodic future thinking (EFT; pre-experiencing future events) reduces discounting of future rewards (DD). No studies have investigated whether process simulations (i.e., simulating the process of executing a future event) amplify EFT's reduction of DD. Study 1 examined the effect of incorporating process simulations into EFT (N = 42, M age = 43.27; 91% female, family income = $75,976) using a 2 × 2 factorial design with type of episodic thinking (process, nonprocess/general) and temporal perspective (EFT, episodic recent thinking) as between-subjects factors. Study 2 replicated Study 1 in a sample of adults living in poverty (N = 36; M age = 38.44, 88% female; family income = $25,625). The results of both studies showed EFT reduced DD, but process-oriented EFT did not amplify the effect of EFT. Our findings suggest the key ingredient in EFT's effect on DD is self-projection into the future. This was also the first study to show EFT improves DD in a sample living in poverty.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara O'Donnell
- Department of Pediatrics, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York, United States
| | - Tinuke Oluyomi Daniel
- Department of Pediatrics, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York, United States
| | - Jordynn Koroschetz
- Department of Pediatrics, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York, United States
| | - Colleen Kilanowski
- Department of Pediatrics, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York, United States
| | - Aris Otminski
- Department of Pediatrics, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York, United States
| | - Warren K Bickel
- Department of Psychiatry, Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute, Roanoke, Virginia, United States
| | - Leonard H Epstein
- Department of Pediatrics, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York, United States
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