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Full-Text Articles in Biological Psychology
Contributions Of Appetitive And Aversive Motivational Systems To Decision-Making, Heather E. Soder
Contributions Of Appetitive And Aversive Motivational Systems To Decision-Making, Heather E. Soder
USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations
Optimal decision-making entails outcome evaluation, comparing received costs and benefits with predicted costs and benefits. The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), a brain area with major connections to the appetitive and aversive motivation systems, may provide the neural substrate of this evaluation process. One way to measure the relative contribution of these systems on decision-making is to measure individual differences in risk-taking behaviors. For individuals who make risky choices, this evaluation step may be biased: some show a preference for immediate, short-term rewards (increased appetitive system), while devaluing the long-term consequences of their choices (decreased aversive system). However, most studies supporting …
Individual Differences In The Dopaminergic Reward System: The Effect Of Genetic Risk On Neural Reward Sensitivity And Risky Choice, Heather E. Soder
Individual Differences In The Dopaminergic Reward System: The Effect Of Genetic Risk On Neural Reward Sensitivity And Risky Choice, Heather E. Soder
USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations
When making decisions, individuals evaluate several possible outcomes of their choice; however, some display heightened reward sensitivity, despite the potential for future negative consequences, which can lead one to make risky choices. Rewards are processed in the mesolimbic dopamine reward system, and this system is in part modulated by genetic polymorphisms that are associated with dopamine transmission. The current study tested if genetic polymorphisms that are associated with enhanced dopamine neurotransmission will be more neurally reward sensitive, score higher on self-reported impulsivity, and make riskier choices. In a sample of 85 participants, five genetic polymorphisms were genotyped and used to …