Journal article
Choosing Spouses and Houses: Impaired Congruence Between Preference and Choice Following Damage to the Ventromedial Prefrontal Cortex
Neuropsychology, Vol.32(3), pp.280-303
03/2018
DOI: 10.1037/neu0000421
PMCID: PMC5890956
PMID: 29620403
Abstract
Objective: A well-documented effect of focal ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) damage is a deficit in real-world decision making. An important aspect of this deficit may be a deficiency in "internal consistency" during social decision making-that is, impaired congruence between expressed preferences versus actual behavioral choices. An example of low internal consistency would be if one expressed the desire to marry someone with impeccable moral character, yet proceeded to marry someone convicted of multiple felonies. Here, we used a neuropsychological approach to investigate neural correlates of internal consistency in complex decision making. Method: Sixteen individuals with focal vmPFC lesions, 16 brain damage comparison individuals, and 16 normal comparison individuals completed a 3-option forced-choice preference task in which choices were made using attribute sets. Participants also completed visual-analogue preference ratings to indicate how much they liked each option, and rated the influence of each attribute on their decision making. Options were either social (potential spouses) or nonsocial (potential houses). Internal consistency for a trial was defined as agreement between the choice and the most positively rated option. Results: A mixed design analysis of variance revealed that internal consistency between choices and preferences derived from summed attribute ratings was significantly lower for the vmPFC group relative to comparison participants, but only in the social condition (pη2 = .09), 95% CI [.002, .163]. Conclusions: Internal consistency during social decisions may be deficient in patients with vmPFC damage, leading to a discrepancy between preferences and choices. The vmPFC may provide an important neural mechanism for aligning behavioral choices with expressed preferences.
General Scientific Summary
This study suggests that persons with vmPFC damage may display poor congruence between their thoughts and actions during social decisions. This raises concerns about their ability to make important life decisions that involve social information (e.g., signing a will).
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Choosing Spouses and Houses: Impaired Congruence Between Preference and Choice Following Damage to the Ventromedial Prefrontal Cortex
- Creators
- Mark D Bowren - Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of IowaKatie E Croft - Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Neuroscience, University of IowaJustin Reber - Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of IowaDaniel Tranel - Department of Neurology, University of Iowa College of Medicine; Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa
- Contributors
- Gregory G Brown (Editor)
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Neuropsychology, Vol.32(3), pp.280-303
- Publisher
- American Psychological Association
- DOI
- 10.1037/neu0000421
- PMID
- 29620403
- PMCID
- PMC5890956
- ISSN
- 0894-4105
- eISSN
- 1931-1559
- Grant note
- DOI: 10.13039/100000025, name: National Institute of Mental Health, award: 2P50 MH094258; DOI: 10.13039/100000065, name: National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, award: P50 NS19632; DOI: 10.13039/100000026, name: National Institute on Drug Abuse, award: R01 DA022549; DOI: 10.13039/100000913, name: McDonnell Foundation, award: 220020387; name: Kiwanis Foundation
- Comment
- Test development: Multioption, Multiattribute Decision-Making Paradigm
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 03/2018
- Academic Unit
- Neurology; Psychiatry; Psychological and Brain Sciences; Iowa Neuroscience Institute; Neurosurgery
- Record Identifier
- 9984070710702771
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