Abstract
The vast majority of decision-making research is performed under the assumption of the value maximizing principle. This principle implies that when making decisions, individuals try to optimize outcomes on the basis of cold mathematical equations. However, decisions are emotion-laden rather than cool and analytic when they tap into life-threatening considerations. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), this study investigated the neural mechanisms underlying vital loss decisions. Participants were asked to make a forced choice between two losses across three conditions: both losses are trivial (trivial-trivial), both losses are vital (vital-vital), or one loss is trivial and the other is vital (vital-trivial). Our results revealed that the amygdala was more active and correlated positively with self-reported negative emotion associated with choice during vital-vital loss decisions, when compared to trivial-trivial loss decisions. The rostral anterior cingulate cortex was also more active and correlated positively with self-reported difficulty of choice during vital-vital loss decisions. Compared to the activity observed during trivial-trivial loss decisions, the orbitofrontal cortex and ventral striatum were more active and correlated positively with self-reported positive emotion of choice during vital-trivial loss decisions. Our findings suggest that vital loss decisions involve emotions and cannot be adequately captured by cold computation of minimizing losses. This research will shed light on how people make vital loss decisions.
Highlights
Organisms follow the principle of approaching gains and avoiding losses for survival and act as`adaptable executors'' [1]
Compared to trivial-trivial loss decision (TT) loss decisions, we found that (i) when vital-vital loss decision (VV) loss decisions were made, increased activation occurred in the medial prefrontal cortex (PFC), rostral anterior cingulate cortex (rACC), and amygdala, and (ii) during vital-trivial loss decision (VT) loss decisions, increases in brain activity were observed in the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) and ventral striatum
Behavioral data indicated that both the objective reaction times (RTs) and the subjective self-reported choice difficulty were increased when making VV loss decisions compared to when making TT loss decisions
Summary
Organisms follow the principle of approaching gains and avoiding losses for survival and act as`adaptable executors'' [1]. The house lizard will sacrifice its tail and run away quickly to survive [7], and the sea cucumber ejects its visceral organs to escape harm from predators [8] These examples, and many others, demonstrate the willingness of animals to sacrifice a part of their bodies to save their own lives. Human beings can make dramatic sacrifices, to preserve their own lives, and to preserve other vital things, such as health, nature, love, honor, justice or human rights, each of which can be regarded as distinctly important, absolute, inviolable, and non-negotiable [9±11] These things can be considered irreplaceable, and their loss may present a greater threat to the survival and reproduction of human beings than the loss of ordinary objects, such as money [12,13]. Exploring the neural basis of vital loss decisions is important from an evolutionary perspective
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