scholarly journals The orbitofrontal cortex in temporal cognition.

2021 ◽  
Vol 135 (2) ◽  
pp. 154-164
Author(s):  
Juan Luis Romero Sosa ◽  
Dean Buonomano ◽  
Alicia Izquierdo
2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan Luis Romero Sosa ◽  
Dean Buonomano ◽  
Alicia Izquierdo

AbstractOne of the most important factors in decision making is estimating the value of available options. Subregions of the prefrontal cortex, including the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), have been deemed essential for this process. Value computations require a complex integration across numerous dimensions, including, reward magnitude, effort, internal state, and time. The importance of the temporal dimension is well-illustrated by temporal discounting tasks, in which subjects select between smaller-sooner versus larger-later rewards. The specific role of OFC in telling time and integrating temporal information into decision making remains unclear. Based on the current literature, in this review we reevaluate current theories of OFC function, accounting for the influence of time. Incorporating temporal information into value estimation and decision making requires distinct, yet interrelated, forms of temporal information including the ability to tell time, represent time, create temporal expectations, and the ability to use this information for optimal decision making in a wide range of tasks, including temporal discounting and wagering. We use the term ‘temporal cognition’ to refer to the integrated use of these different aspects of temporal information. We suggest that the OFC may be a critical site for the integration of reward magnitude and delay, and thus important for temporal cognition.


2019 ◽  
Vol 42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin J. De Corte ◽  
Edward A. Wasserman

Abstract Hoerl & McCormack propose that animals learn sequences through an entrainment-like process, rather than tracking the temporal addresses of each event in a given sequence. However, past research suggests that animals form “temporal maps” of sequential events and also comprehend the concept of ordinal position. These findings suggest that a clarification or qualification of the authors’ hypothesis is needed.


2018 ◽  
Vol 77 (4) ◽  
pp. 173-184
Author(s):  
Wenxing Yang ◽  
Ying Sun

Abstract. The causal role of a unidirectional orthography in shaping speakers’ mental representations of time seems to be well established by many psychological experiments. However, the question of whether bidirectional writing systems in some languages can also produce such an impact on temporal cognition remains unresolved. To address this issue, the present study focused on Japanese and Taiwanese, both of which have a similar mix of texts written horizontally from left to right (HLR) and vertically from top to bottom (VTB). Two experiments were performed which recruited Japanese and Taiwanese speakers as participants. Experiment 1 used an explicit temporal arrangement design, and Experiment 2 measured implicit space-time associations in participants along the horizontal (left/right) and the vertical (up/down) axis. Converging evidence gathered from the two experiments demonstrate that neither Japanese speakers nor Taiwanese speakers aligned their vertical representations of time with the VTB writing orientation. Along the horizontal axis, only Japanese speakers encoded elapsing time into a left-to-right linear layout, which was commensurate with the HLR writing direction. Therefore, two distinct writing orientations of a language could not bring about two coexisting mental time lines. Possible theoretical implications underlying the findings are discussed.


2008 ◽  
Vol 122 (1) ◽  
pp. 174-182 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas C. Pritchard ◽  
Erin N. Nedderman ◽  
Erin M. Edwards ◽  
Andrew C. Petticoffer ◽  
Gary J. Schwartz ◽  
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2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew P H Gardner ◽  
Geoffrey Schoenbaum

Theories of orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) function have evolved substantially over the last few decades. There is now a general consensus that the OFC is important for predicting aspects of future events and for using these predictions to guide behavior. Yet the precise content of these predictions and the degree to which OFC contributes to agency contingent upon them has become contentious, with several plausible theories advocating different answers to these questions. In this review we will focus on three of these ideas - the economic value, credit assignment, and cognitive map hypotheses – describing both their successes and failures. We will propose that these failures hint at a more nuanced role for the OFC in supporting the proposed functions when an underlying model or map of the causal structures in the environment must be constructed or updated.


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