scholarly journals The Subjective Value of Cognitive Effort is Encoded by a Domain-General Valuation Network

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew Westbrook ◽  
Bidhan Lamichhane ◽  
Todd Braver
Keyword(s):  
Task Performance ◽  
Ventral Striatum ◽  
Cognitive Effort ◽  
Physiological Mechanisms ◽  
Cognitive Demands ◽  
Sensitivity To Reward ◽  
Frontoparietal Network ◽  
Subjective Value ◽  
Goal Directed Behavior ◽  
Goal Value

SummaryCognitive control is necessary for goal-directed behavior, yet people treat control as costly, discounting goal value by cognitive demands in a similar manner as they would for delayed or risky outcomes. It is unclear, however, whether a putatively domain-general valuation network implicated in other cost domains also encodes the subjective value (SV) of cognitive effort. Here, we demonstrate that a valuation network, centered on the ventromedial prefrontal cortex and ventral striatum, also encodes SV during cognitive effort-based decision-making. We doubly dissociate this network from a primarily frontoparietal network recruited as a function of decision difficulty. We also find evidence that SV signals predict choice and are influenced by state and trait motivation, including sensitivity to reward and anticipated task performance. These findings unify cognitive effort with other cost domains, and inform physiological mechanisms of SV representations underlying the willingness to expend cognitive effort.

scholarly journals Dispositional individual differences in cognitive effort investment: establishing the core construct

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Corinna Kührt ◽  
Sebastian Pannasch ◽  
Stefan J. Kiebel ◽  
Alexander Strobel
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Latent Variables ◽  
Effortful Control ◽  
Factor Model ◽  
Cognitive Effort ◽  
Self Control ◽  
Behavioral Measures ◽  
Effort Discounting ◽  
Cognitive Motivation ◽  
Goal Directed Behavior

Abstract Background Individuals tend to avoid effortful tasks, regardless of whether they are physical or mental in nature. Recent experimental evidence is suggestive of individual differences in the dispositional willingness to invest cognitive effort in goal-directed behavior. The traits need for cognition (NFC) and self-control are related to behavioral measures of cognitive effort discounting and demand avoidance, respectively. Given that these traits are only moderately related, the question arises whether they reflect a common core factor underlying cognitive effort investment. If so, the common core of both traits might be related to behavioral measures of effort discounting in a more systematic fashion. To address this question, we aimed at specifying a core construct of cognitive effort investment that reflects dispositional differences in the willingness and tendency to exert effortful control. Methods We conducted two studies (N = 613 and N = 244) with questionnaires related to cognitive motivation and effort investment including assessment of NFC, intellect, self-control and effortful control. We first calculated Pearson correlations followed by two mediation models regarding intellect and its separate aspects, seek and conquer, as mediators. Next, we performed a confirmatory factor analysis of a hierarchical model of cognitive effort investment as second-order latent variable. First-order latent variables were cognitive motivation reflecting NFC and intellect, and effortful self-control reflecting self-control and effortful control. Finally, we calculated Pearson correlations between factor scores of the latent variables and general self-efficacy as well as traits of the Five Factor Model of Personality for validation purposes. Results Our findings support the hypothesized correlations between the assessed traits, where the relationship of NFC and self-control is specifically mediated via goal-directedness. We established and replicated a hierarchical factor model of cognitive motivation and effortful self-control that explains the shared variance of the first-order factors by a second-order factor of cognitive effort investment. Conclusions Taken together, our results integrate disparate literatures on cognitive motivation and self-control and provide a basis for further experimental research on the role of dispositional individual differences in goal-directed behavior and cost–benefit-models.

scholarly journals Corticoinsular circuits encode subjective value expectation and violation for effortful goal-directed behavior

2018 ◽  
Vol 115 (22) ◽  
pp. E5233-E5242 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda R. Arulpragasam ◽  
Jessica A. Cooper ◽  
Makiah R. Nuutinen ◽  
Michael T. Treadway
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Relevant Information ◽  
Neural Mechanisms ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Error Signal ◽  
Value Prediction ◽  
Subjective Value ◽  
Effort Discounting ◽  
Trial History ◽  
Goal Directed Behavior

We are presented with choices each day about how to invest our effort to achieve our goals. Critically, these decisions must frequently be made under conditions of incomplete information, where either the effort required or possible reward to be gained is uncertain. Such choices therefore require the development of potential value estimates to guide effortful goal-directed behavior. To date, however, the neural mechanisms for this expectation process are unknown. Here, we used computational fMRI during an effort-based decision-making task where trial-wise information about effort costs and reward magnitudes was presented separately over time, thereby allowing us to model distinct effort/reward computations as choice-relevant information unfolded. We found that ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) encoded expected subjective value. Further, activity in dorsal anterior cingulate (dACC) and anterior insula (aI) reflected both effort discounting as well as a subjective value prediction error signal derived from trial history. While prior studies have identified these regions as being involved in effort-based decision making, these data demonstrate their specific role in the formation and maintenance of subjective value estimates as relevant information becomes available.

scholarly journals A neuronal reward inequity signal in primate striatum

2016 ◽  
Vol 115 (1) ◽  
pp. 68-79 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raymundo Báez-Mendoza ◽  
Charlotte R. van Coeverden ◽  
Wolfram Schultz
Keyword(s):  
Social Interactions ◽  
Rhesus Monkeys ◽  
Response Times ◽  
Decision Variable ◽  
Striatal Neurons ◽  
Sensitivity To Reward ◽  
Neuronal Mechanisms ◽  
Behavioral Sensitivity ◽  
Reward Information ◽  
Goal Directed Behavior

Primates are social animals, and their survival depends on social interactions with others. Especially important for social interactions and welfare is the observation of rewards obtained by other individuals and the comparison with own reward. The fundamental social decision variable for the comparison process is reward inequity, defined by an asymmetric reward distribution among individuals. An important brain structure for coding reward inequity may be the striatum, a component of the basal ganglia involved in goal-directed behavior. Two rhesus monkeys were seated opposite each other and contacted a touch-sensitive table placed between them to obtain specific magnitudes of reward that were equally or unequally distributed among them. Response times in one of the animals demonstrated differential behavioral sensitivity to reward inequity. A group of neurons in the striatum showed distinct signals reflecting disadvantageous and advantageous reward inequity. These neuronal signals occurred irrespective of, or in conjunction with, own reward coding. These data demonstrate that striatal neurons of macaque monkeys sense the differences between other's and own reward. The neuronal activities are likely to contribute crucial reward information to neuronal mechanisms involved in social interactions.

scholarly journals Electrophysiological indices of anterior cingulate cortex function reveal changing levels of cognitive effort and reward valuation that sustain task performance

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Akina Umemoto ◽  
Michael Inzlicht ◽  
Clay B. Holroyd
Keyword(s):  
Anterior Cingulate Cortex ◽  
Task Performance ◽  
Cingulate Cortex ◽  
Cognitive Effort ◽  
Reward Processing ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Time On Task ◽  
Frontal Midline Theta ◽  
High Control ◽  
Reward Valuation

AbstractSuccessful execution of goal-directed behaviors often requires the deployment of cognitive control, which is thought to require cognitive effort. Recent theories have proposed that anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) regulates control levels by weighing the reward-related benefits of control against its effort-related costs. However, given that the sensations of cognitive effort and reward valuation are available only to introspection, this hypothesis is difficult to investigate empirically. We have proposed that two electrophysiological indices of ACC function, frontal midline theta and the reward positivity (RewP), provide objective measures of these functions. To investigate this issue, we recorded the electroencephalogram (EEG) from participants engaged in an extended, cognitively-demanding task. Participants performed a time estimation task for 2 hours in which they received reward and error feedback according to their task performance. We observed that the amplitude of the RewP, a feedback-locked component of the event related brain potential associated with reward processing, decreased with time-on-task. Conversely, frontal midline theta power, which consists of 4-8 Hz EEG oscillations associated with cognitive effort, increased with time-on-task. We also examined how these phenomena changed over time by conducting within-participant multi-level modeling analyses. Our results suggest that extended execution of a cognitively-demanding task is characterized by an early phase in which high control levels combine with strong reward valuation to foster rapid improvements in task performance, and a later phase in which high control levels counteract waning reward valuation to maintain stable task performance.

scholarly journals Distinct striatal subregions and corticostriatal connectivity for effort, action and reward

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shosuke Suzuki ◽  
Victoria M. Lawlor ◽  
Jessica A. Cooper ◽  
Amanda R. Arulpragasam ◽  
Michael T. Treadway
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Ventral Striatum ◽  
Cost Benefit ◽  
Prior Work ◽  
Physical Effort ◽  
Large Sample ◽  
Subjective Value ◽  
Effort Discounting ◽  
Freely Moving ◽  
The Relationship

AbstractThe ventral striatum is believed to encode the subjective value of cost/benefit options; however, this effect has strikingly been absent during choices that involve physical effort. Prior work in freely-moving animals has revealed opposing striatal signals, with greater response to increasing effort demands and reduced responses to rewards requiring effort. Yet, the relationship between these conflicting signals remains unknown. Using fMRI with a naturalistic, effort-based navigation paradigm, we identified functionally-segregated regions within ventral striatum that separately encoded action, effort, and discounting of rewards by effort. Strikingly, these sub-regions mirrored results from a large-sample connectivity-based parcellation of the striatum. Moreover, individual differences in striatal effort activation and effort discounting signals predicted striatal responses to effort-related choices during an independent fMRI task. Taken together, our results suggest that a dorsomedial region primarily associated with action may instead represent the effort cost of actions, and raises fundamental questions regarding the interpretation of striatal “reward” signals in the context of effort demands.

scholarly journals The tubular striatum and nucleus accumbens distinctly represent reward-taking and seeking

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine N. Wright ◽  
Daniel W Wesson
Keyword(s):  
Nucleus Accumbens ◽  
Ventral Striatum ◽  
Neural Representation ◽  
Single Unit Activity ◽  
Self Administration ◽  
Reward Seeking ◽  
Motivated Behavior ◽  
Behavioral Paradigm ◽  
Motivated Behaviors ◽  
Goal Directed Behavior

The ventral striatum regulates motivated behaviors which are essential for survival. The ventral striatum contains both the nucleus accumbens (NAc), which is well established to contribute to motivated behavior, and the adjacent tubular striatum (TuS), which is poorly understood in this context. We reasoned that these ventral striatal subregions may be uniquely specialized in their neural representation of goal-directed behavior. To test this, we simultaneously examined TuS and NAc single-unit activity as male mice engaged in a sucrose self-administration task, which included extinction and cue-induced reinstatement sessions. While background levels of activity were comparable between regions, more TuS neurons were recruited upon reward-taking, and among recruited neurons, TuS neurons displayed greater changes in their firing during reward-taking and extinction than those in the NAc. Conversely, NAc neurons displayed greater changes in their firing during cue-reinstated reward-seeking. Interestingly, at least in the context of this behavioral paradigm, TuS neural activity predicted reward-seeking whereas NAc activity did not. Together, by directly comparing their dynamics in several behavioral contexts, this work reveals that the NAc and TuS ventral striatum subregions distinctly represent reward-taking and seeking.

scholarly journals Reward Anticipation in Ventral Striatum and Individual Sensitivity to Reward: A Pilot Study of a Child-Friendly fMRI Task

PLoS ONE ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. e0142413 ◽  
Author(s):  
Branko M. van Hulst ◽  
Patrick de Zeeuw ◽  
Kellina Lupas ◽  
Dienke J. Bos ◽  
Sebastiaan F. W. Neggers ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pilot Study ◽  
Ventral Striatum ◽  
Individual Sensitivity ◽  
Sensitivity To Reward ◽  
Reward Anticipation ◽  
Child Friendly

A stressful task is when to turn off the music: Effect of music on task performance mediated by cognitive effort

2021 ◽  
pp. 030573562199602
Author(s):  
Ana Arboleda ◽  
Christian Arroyo ◽  
Brayan Rodriguez ◽  
Carlos Arce-Lopera
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Task Performance ◽  
Cognitive Effort ◽  
Task Characteristics ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
Web Interface ◽  
Fast Tempo ◽  
Stressful Task ◽  
Slow Tempo ◽  
And Task

Studies on the effect of music on task performance are contradictory about this relationship’s direction and valence. Task characteristics may be accounting for these inconclusive findings. Thus, this study employs effort to mediate music’s effect on task performance (objective and perceived) under a stressful decision-making process. This is a between-group experiment with three conditions: slow-tempo music, fast-tempo music, or no music. We designed a computer web interface, where participants did a stressful task. Results demonstrated that participants made a strong effort under the conditions with music. Hence, turning the music off under stressful activities is favorable in terms of performance. The article contributes to understanding the interaction between music and task performance, expanding the discussion within a stressful task.

Task-positive Functional Connectivity of the Default Mode Network Transcends Task Domain

2015 ◽  
Vol 27 (12) ◽  
pp. 2369-2381 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda Elton ◽  
Wei Gao
Keyword(s):  
Functional Connectivity ◽  
Task Performance ◽  
Default Mode Network ◽  
Inferior Frontal Gyrus ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Positive Functional ◽  
Default Mode ◽  
Goal Directed Behavior ◽  
Increased Activity

The default mode network (DMN) was first recognized as a set of brain regions demonstrating consistently greater activity during rest than during a multitude of tasks. Originally, this network was believed to interfere with goal-directed behavior based on its decreased activity during many such tasks. More recently, however, the role of the DMN during goal-directed behavior was established for internally oriented tasks, in which the DMN demonstrated increased activity. However, the well-documented hub position and information-bridging potential of midline DMN regions indicate that there is more to uncover regarding its functional contributions to goal-directed tasks, which may be based on its functional interactions rather than its level of activation. An investigation of task-related changes in DMN functional connectivity during a series of both internal and external tasks would provide the requisite investigation for examining the role of the DMN during goal-directed task performance. In this study, 20 participants underwent fMRI while performing six tasks spanning diverse internal and external domains in addition to a resting-state scan. We hypothesized that the DMN would demonstrate “task-positive” (i.e., positively contributing to task performance) changes in functional connectivity relative to rest regardless of the direction of task-related changes in activity. Indeed, our results demonstrate significant increases in DMN connectivity with task-promoting regions (e.g., anterior insula, inferior frontal gyrus, middle frontal gyrus) across all six tasks. Furthermore, canonical correlation analyses indicated that the observed task-related connectivity changes were significantly associated with individual differences in task performance. Our results indicate that the DMN may not only support a “default” mode but may play a greater role in both internal and external tasks through flexible coupling with task-relevant brain regions.

scholarly journals Topographical functional correlates of interindividual differences in executive functions in young healthy twins

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arianna Menardi ◽  
Andrew E. Reineberg ◽  
Louisa L. Smith ◽  
Chiara Favaretto ◽  
Antonino Vallesi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Executive Functions ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Imaging Data ◽  
Interindividual Differences ◽  
Frontoparietal Network ◽  
Show Evidence ◽  
Brain States ◽  
Cortical Involvement ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Goal Directed Behavior

AbstractExecutive functions (EF) are a set of higher-order cognitive abilities that enable goal-directed behavior by controlling lower-level operations. In the brain, those functions have been traditionally associated with activity in the Frontoparietal Network, but recent neuroimaging studies have challenged this view in favor of more widespread cortical involvement. In the present study, we aimed to explore whether the network that serves as critical hubs at rest, which we term network reliance, differentiate individuals as a function of their level of EF. Furthermore, we investigated whether such differences are driven by genetic as compared to environmental factors. For this purpose, resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging data and the behavioral testing of 453 twins from the Colorado Longitudinal Twins Study were analyzed. Separate indices of EF performance were obtained according to a bifactor unity/diversity model, distinguishing between three independent components representing: Common EF, Shifting-specific and Updating-specific abilities. Through an approach of step-wise in silico network lesioning of the individual functional connectome, we show that interindividual differences in EF are associated with different dependencies on neural networks at rest. Furthermore, these patterns show evidence of mild heritability. Such findings add knowledge to the understanding of brain states at rest and their connection with human behavior, and how they might be shaped by genetic influences.

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