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In a groundbreaking study published in The Journal of Neuroscience, researchers from the RIKEN Center for Brain Science have uncovered new insights into how the brain incorporates predictions about the actions of others into the decision-making process.
The experiment, which uses the classic prisoner’s dilemma thought experiment, sheds light on the brain’s mechanisms when individuals predict the behavior of others to inform their own choices. The prisoner’s dilemma asks an individual to decide whether to remain silent or betray an accomplice based on expectations of how the other will act.
While previous studies have identified brain structures involved in social decision-making, how these predictions influence choices remained unclear. Hiroyuki Nakahara, a lead researcher at RIKEN, expressed the team’s goal: “We’re especially interested in understanding how human social capabilities are realized in the human brain.”
The team used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to study brain activity while participants performed a computer-based task. In the task, participants chose between two options, where the number of points they received was affected by the choices of another individual. This allowed the team to observe brain activity both when participants predicted others’ choices and when they acted based on those predictions.
The results revealed that multiple brain regions were involved in predicting how others might choose. However, the amygdala stood out, showing heightened activity when participants adjusted their choices based on predictions about another’s behavior. “The amygdala thus stands out when a subject adjusts their own choice based on their prediction of how others are likely to respond,” Nakahara explained.
Other regions, such as the posterior cingulate cortex and the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, played specific roles in computing choices based on likely or unlikely predictions about others’ decisions.
The experiment was designed to strip away complexities and focus on the core brain processes involved in predicting others’ choices. “We tried to investigate, after stripping away many factors that might occur in different social occasions, a core brain process for predicting others’ choices and using those for one’s own choices,” Nakahara said.
Future research will aim to incorporate more complexity into these findings, shedding further light on the intricacies of socially informed decision-making.
Disclaimer: This article summarizes research findings published in The Journal of Neuroscience and should not be taken as medical or psychological advice.
