PSY 223 Exam 3 Flashcards
Decision
Perceptual decision
Value-based decision
Foraging decision
Encounter value:
Search value:
Search cost:
Decision: “a deliberative process that results in the selection of one option among several” - Possible options to decide between (Sensory and Perceptual Input) - Decision-making combines sensation and perception to lead to action
Perceptual decision: “a categorical decision about a perceived stimulus”
Value-based decision: “selecting between two (or more) items when faced with a choice”, based on which outcome will lead to the greatest value
Foraging decision: “the more-or-less continual decision of whether to persist in one’s current mode of behavior or whether to change to a different mode of behavior”
- Encounter value: “value of exploiting the option one has encountered”
- Search value: “potential of exploring and finding something better”
- Search cost: “energetic cost of embarking on the search”
How does MT contribute to perceptual decisions of visual motion?
Region MT in the dorsal where visual pathway:
Selective to movement in a particular direction → arrow indicates direction of movement of a bar of light => MT neuron only responds when bar moves in a certain direction (diagonally up and right)
Decision-related activity during motion discrimination - Accuracy & MT firing rate increase with greater coherence
MT is involved in providing inputs to the decision
What 3 properties does LIP(Lateral intraparietal area) exhibit to support perceptual decisions of visual motion? Know that LIP activity can reflect perceptual decisions. LIP can also reflect value-based decisions, but only for certain types of tasks and stimuli.
Integrating inputs from MT in LIP: What might we expect activity to look like? Representing perceptual decisions in LIP
1. A gradual increase in activity during the ‘decision’ (moving dots), but only for a certain ‘choice’ (eye movement)
2. Easier decision (greater coherence) should lead to a faster response
3. If a decision is made – even in the absence of a true signal (0% coherence) – activity should still reflect the upcoming choice: activity reflects the decision, not just what is being viewed
LIP: Lateral intraparietal area
Receives input from MT neurons, where individual MT neurons are sensitive to different directions of movement
-> LIP could integrate information across MT neurons to make the decision
Sends output to frontal eye fields (FEF), which is important for eye movements
-> LIP could help direct eye movements based on the decision
LIP exhibits activity consistent with making the decision and the decision outcome (3 properties) - LIP exhibits increased activity in response to a stimulus with greater value. However, this is based on perceptual information, to which LIP is particularly sensitive. If the decision does not involve visual information and an eye movement, LIP may not be more active during the decision
- valued based decisions - perception and eye movements
Define menu invariance and value transitivity. Know that OFC/vmPFC can exhibit activity consistent with these two properties, and thus with value-based decisions.
Menu invariance: Reflect the value of a particular stimulus, irrespective of what it is being compared to - OFC neuron can reflect the value of a particular stimulus, irrespective of other choices
Value transitivity: Reflect the tradeoff in value between stimuli - OFC neuron can reflect the difference in value, irrespective of stimuli - vmPFC and value-transitivity, Behavioral value (proportions of exchanges of faces)
Value-based decisions: “…integrate the various dimensions of an option into a single measure of its idiosyncratic subjective value and then choose the option that is most valuable. Comparisons of different kinds of decisions rely on this abstract measure of subjective value, a kind of ‘common currency’ for choice.” –
vmPFC / OFC: reflect values and tradeoffs in values
Striatum: learning new values and rewards - helps to keep track of reward prediction error
Define reward prediction error. Which brain region is involved in calculating it?
RPE = reward occurs - reward predicted: Dopamine midbrain neuron
positive prediction error : reward occurs > reward predicted reward occurs - reward predicted > 0
neutral : reward occurs = reward predicted
negative prediction error: reward occurs < reward predicted reward occurs - reward predicted < 0
Reward response in Striatum
Greater change in activity in striatum with greater change in reward prediction error = reward occurs - reward predicted
Define theory of mind. What are 3 important factors to consider in a theory of mind task? What is a moral judgment task, and why is it important for social cognition? Which brain region is important for theory of mind and moral judgment tasks?
Cognitive processes unique to social situations - Can be assessed with tasks that require thinking about others’ intentions and outcomes
Theory of mind: “The ability to build models of the thoughts and beliefs of others”
Theory of mind task: Factors to consider
1. Important to that the“belief” is false to some (e.g. asking Sally about where the marble is in Panel 2 doesn’t require theory of mind, because Sally’s belief is aligned with the objective truth)
2. Important to control for the false belief logic
3. Important to control for faces and people
Moral judgments: “When we judge an action as morally right or wrong, we rely on our capacity to infer the actor’s mental states (e.g., beliefs, intentions).”
Study of moral judgments: Study brain activity associated with scenarios where people had good intentions vs. bad intentions, irrespective of the actual outcome →Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS): creates reversible lesions in humans by creating a magnetic field that influences electrical properties of the brain
in a social cognition task: based on scenarios where people had good intentions vs. bad intentions, irrespective of the actual outcome - important for social cognition because requires distinguishing a person’s beliefs from their actions
Negative belief, neutral outcome: Temporary lesion (with TMS) to the Right TPJ led to increased moral permissibility for negative beliefs that nonetheless had a neutral outcome
Brain region: temporoparietal junction (TPJ)
Define observational learning, experiential learning. Know the three brain regions we discussed which exhibit changes in activity during an observational learning task, and which conditions led to their change in activity.
Observational learning: Learning by observing the behaviors and actions of others
Experiential learning: learning through one’s own behaviors and actions
Examine brain activity for:
1. other’s choice - the other person’s choice (not necessarily theory of mind)
Dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC)
- other’s outcome from their choice (the outcome of another’s choice — how they’ll react based on what they’re thinking)
ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC)
Ventral striatum - own outcome (involved in reward processing, may also reflect when it is “rewarding to view the misfortune of others”, At least, thinking about reward may differ in social situations for one’s self versus another)
Ventral striatum
As discussed in class, case studies from which brain regions have been interpreted as impairments in social processing or emotional processing?
frontal lobe
Damage to vmPFC/OFC impacts social cognition
Damage to vmPFC/OFC impacts emotional cognition
Social cognition: “a broad term used to describe cognitive processes related to the perception, understanding, and implementation of linguistic, auditory, visual, and physical cues that communicate emotional and interpersonal information”
Impairments in social processing: Damage to ventromedial PFC / orbitofrontal cortex
Apart of social: Anterior temporal lobe, Mirror neurons in premotor cortex, Medial prefrontal cortex(mPFC)
Emotion: temporary state that relates to significance of environmental state
Impairments emotional processing: vmPFC / OFC in social cognition - generalized social phobia
Name and define two dimensions used to characterize emotion on a cognitive level.
Defining Emotion:Dimensions
Valence:
(un)pleasantness of an emotion
whether emotion leads to avoidance (unpleasant) or approach (pleasant) behavior
Arousal:
intensity of an emotion
whether emotion leads to activation or deactivation
What is the difference between implicit and explicit measures of emotion? Why are implicit measures of emotion useful in cognitive neuroscience experiments? List two main ways how each of these measures are assessed experimentally.
Explicit: ask participants explicitly, Manipulate of emotional state and ask participants what they think (self-report), Recognition of emotional facial expressions
Implicit: measure response implicitly reflecting emotion, Arousal of peripheral/autonomic nervous system (HR, BP)
- Useful in cognitive neuroscience experiments because: emotional responses are subjective AND can assess in animals (but can’t ask animals to state their emotions)
- Galvanic skin response / Skin conductance response - Used to assess the response of the autonomic nervous system to emotional stimuli - Fear conditioning: Creating new associations between a neutral stimulus (CS) and a negative stimulus (US)
Useful in cognitive neuroscience experiments because: - can assess in animals (but can’t ask animals to state their emotions) - can help distinguish subtle differences in emotions - emotional responses can be subjective
Define the Cannon Bard theory of emotion, and the James Lange theory of emotion. Which of these argues that participants are more likely to misattribute their emotions?
Cannon-Bard theory of emotion: Sensory input is received and perceived by the brain, which then leads to changes in the body and an expression including the autonomic nervous system (ANS - ANS activity is used to measure subjective and objective measures of arousal) - it is common to assume that the emotional processing comes first, and the physiological experience comes second - see info, goes to brain, have reaction
James-Lange theory of emotion
(e.g. increased heart rate), occur before the neural event, but are attributed to the current environment even if it’s inappropriate - bodily responses happen before the brain realizes - peripheral NS to interpret. The same physiological experience (adrenaline) was interpreted as a different emotion by the uninformed subjects based on the experimenter => emotional expression comes before emotional experience - some evidence to suggest that the physiological response comes before the emotional experience
Misattribution of emotion: attributing emotions to the wrong source - Smiling makes participants feel happier, even when the smile is due to holding a pen (James-Lange theory)
Which type of emotion is associated with the amygdala? What deficits do people exhibit when the amygdala is lesioned?
Amygdala activity is often greater during memory retrieval of
emotional events
Amygdala helps to improve explicit memory for emotional events
- emotionally arousing events are generally remembered better
than neutral events
- patients with lesions to the amygdala do not show improved
memory for emotional events
Emotion is thought to be mediated by the limbic system, including: Amygdala AND Hippocampus
Amygdala: receives inputs from sensory cortex and thalamus, sends outputs to the brain regions involved in actions such as avoidance behavior and “reactions” such as freezing — particularly important in processing fear, Amygdala activity is often greater during memory retrieval of emotional events and helps to improve explicit memory for emotional events
Patients with lesions to the amygdala do not show improved memory for emotional events, no response for the CS(sound), an emotional event but normal response to the US(loud, unpleasant sound)
the amygdala is involved in responding to more emotionally arousing stimuli, especially fearful ones
the amygdala is involved in the processing and improved memory for more emotional information (episodic memory)
how the amygdala responds depends on one’s subjective perception of the stimuli
damage to the amygdala also leads to deficits in longstanding knowledge of emotional expressions, especially fear (semantic memory)
Which type of emotion is associated with the insular cortex?
primary gustatory (taste) cortex - related to experience of ‘disgust’
What is the set up for a fear conditioning paradigm (what is the conditioned stimulus, unconditioned stimulus, conditioned response)? Which brain region is important for this paradigm (i.e. exhibits greater activity, and performance is impaired when this region is damaged)?
Fear conditioning: Creating new associations between a neutral stimulus (CS) and a negative stimulus (US)
CS = Conditioned Stimulus, tone
US = Unconditioned Stimulus, shock
Over time, animal exhibits a conditioned response to CS (here, a fear response) as if it were US, even in the absence of the US
Conditioned stimulus (CS) + Unconditioned stimulus (US)
Conditioned stimulus (CS): does it lead to conditioned response (CR)?
CS = sound US = shock CR = freezing
Amygdala response to fear conditioning measured with PET activity
CS: angry face
US: unpleasant sound
CR: skin conductance response
when presented with angry face (CS), increased skin conductance response
when presented with angry face (CS) without sound (US), increased PET activity in amygdala
Deficit in fear conditioning with amygdala lesion
no response for the CS, an emotional event but normal response to the US
CS = sound
US = loud unpleasant sound
CR = skin conductance response
Define language. To be proficient in a language, one must be able to do three things. What are these three things, and which brain region is associated with each? For each brain region, if it is damaged, what is the name of the aphasia and the symptoms?
Defining language:“set of learned codes that can be used to express” ourselves to others and understand them”; “medium by which we transmit ideas to one another”, Not the ideas themselves, Not the ability to convey the ideas (communication)
Proficient in a language: one must be able to receive, organize, and express information using that language AND requires other cognitive processes, including: Sensation (audition and vision), Motor control, Memory
Wernicke’s aphasia: “receptive aphasia”, difficulty with receiving or comprehending/understanding language, Damage to Wernicke’s area (located near primary auditory cortex), Cannot understand what others communicate to them, Content of their own speech output makes little sense (“word salad”, using the wrong words or invent words), Wernicke’s aphasia impacts all modes of communication
Broca’s aphasia: “expressive aphasia”, difficulty with expressing or producing language, Damage to Broca’s area (located near premotor cortex, a region primarily active during preparations for a movement or action)
Arcuate fasciculus - Conduction aphasia: Results from damage to the arcuate fasciculus, Language reception and language expression are normal, Patients are unable to repeat language, i.e. going from language reception to language expression directly,
Arcuate fasciculus: language organization/ conduction — relating reception to expression
