Abstract
In multi-attribute choice, people use heuristics to simplify decision problems. We studied the use of heuristic and rational strategies and their electrophysiological correlates. Since previous work linked the P3 ERP component to attention and decision making, we were interested whether the amplitude of this component is associated with decision strategy use. To this end, we recorded EEG when participants performed a two-alternative choice task, where they could acquire decision cues in a sequential manner and use them to make choices. We classified participants’ choices as consistent with a rational Weighted Additive rule (WADD) or a simple heuristic Take The Best (TTB). Participants differed in their preference for WADD and TTB. Using a permutation-based single trial approach, we analyzed EEG responses to consecutive decision cues and their relation to the individual strategy preference. The preference for WADD over TTB was associated with overall higher signal amplitudes to decision cues in the P3 time window. Moreover, the preference for WADD was associated with similar P3 amplitudes to consecutive cues, whereas the preference for TTB was associated with substantial decreases in P3 amplitudes to consecutive cues. We also found that the preference for TTB was associated with enhanced N1 component to cues that discriminated decision alternatives, suggesting very early attention allocation to such cues by TTB users. Our results suggest that preference for either WADD or TTB has an early neural signature reflecting differences in attentional weighting of decision cues. In light of recent findings and hypotheses regarding P3, we interpret these results as indicating the involvement of catecholamine arousal systems in shaping predecisional information processing and strategy selection.
Highlights
When making choices, decision makers must process information, with some choices requiring information integration and others allowing for one-reason decision making
We determined the percentages of choices consistent with each of the two strategies, the Weighted Additive rule (WADD) and the lexicographic heuristic Take The Best (TTB)
This is in contrast to some behavioral studies on decision strategy use (e.g., Rieskamp and Hoffrage, 2008; Wichary et al, 2016), it can be explained by the fact that cue acquisition in our task was costless and easy, and the compensatory structure of the task environment favored the acquisition of all the available cues
Summary
Decision makers must process information, with some choices requiring information integration and others allowing for one-reason decision making. In comparison to WADD users, individuals preferring TTB process information in a more selective manner, spending a greater amount of time on the analysis of the most important cue (Wichary et al, 2016).
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