A free-choice premium in the basal ganglia

Yael Niv; Angela Langdon; Angela Radulescu

doi:10.1016/j.tics.2014.09.005

A free-choice premium in the basal ganglia

Trends Cogn Sci. 2015 Jan;19(1):4-5. doi: 10.1016/j.tics.2014.09.005. Epub 2014 Oct 2.

Authors

Yael Niv¹, Angela Langdon², Angela Radulescu²

Affiliations

¹ Princeton Neuroscience Institute & Psychology Department, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA. Electronic address: [email protected].
² Princeton Neuroscience Institute & Psychology Department, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA.

PMID: 25282675
DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2014.09.005

Abstract

Apparently, the act of free choice confers value: when selecting between an item that you had previously chosen and an identical item that you had been forced to take, the former is often preferred. What could be the neural underpinnings of this free-choice bias in decision making? An elegant study recently published in Neuron suggests that enhanced reward learning in the basal ganglia may be the culprit.

Publication types

Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Comment

MeSH terms

Choice Behavior / physiology*
Humans
Learning / physiology*
Reinforcement, Psychology*

Grants and funding

R01MH098861/MH/NIMH NIH HHS/United States