Skip to main content

The role of emotion in decision-making: Evidence from neurological patients with orbitofrontal damage

The role of emotion in decision-making: Evidence
from neurological patients with orbitofrontal damage

Most theories of choice assume that decisions derive from an assessment of the future outcomes of various options and alternatives
through some type of cost-benefit analyses. The influence of emotions on decision-making is largely ignored. The studies of
decision-making in neurological patients who can no longer process emotional information normally suggest that people make
judgments not only by evaluating the consequences and their probability of occurring, but also and even sometimes primarily at a
gut or emotional level. Lesions of the ventromedial (which includes the orbitofrontal) sector of the prefrontal cortex interfere with
the normal processing of ‘‘somatic’’ or emotional signals, while sparing most basic cognitive functions. Such damage leads to
impairments in the decision-making process, which seriously compromise the quality of decisions in daily life.

[...]

OK, so here they focused on decision making in frontal lobe impaired subjects. They make the point that in real life, you don't always know what the results of your actions will be, so you have to estimate. They had subjects choose from two decks of cards: cards with a modest, but fairly certain, payoff, and another deck which was a losing deck, but with some big payoffs spread inside. Normal people tended towards the sure thing, while frontal lobe impaired patients chose from the risky deck. They tied this in to emotions, by studying skin response to view emotional responses. They found that both groups of patients felt emotions when they won or lost, but that normal patients felt emotions before picking, especially from the risky deck. Impaired patients seemed blind to this, and just made their choices and THEN felt the emotion. They also show that different halves of the brain focus on negative or positive rewards. So depending on the damaged lobe, right or left, the subject might be totally focused on positive rewards, ignoring negative consequences, or totally focused on negative rewards, ignoring the positive. Either way leads to impaired decision making skills. Authors are also trying to point out the role emotion plays in decision making, especially when results are uncertain, as they are in most scenarios in real life.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Insulin Resistance- cause of ADD, diabetes, narcolepsy, etc etc

Insulin Resistance Insulin Resistance Have you been diagnosed with clinical depression? Heart disease? Type II, or adult, diabetes? Narcolepsy? Are you, or do you think you might be, an alcoholic? Do you gain weight around your middle in spite of faithfully dieting? Are you unable to lose weight? Does your child have ADHD? If you have any one of these symptoms, I wrote this article for you. Believe it or not, the same thing can cause all of the above symptoms. I am not a medical professional. I am not a nutritionist. The conclusions I have drawn from my own experience and observations are not rocket science. A diagnosis of clinical depression is as ordinary as the common cold today. Prescriptions for Prozac, Zoloft, Wellbutrin, etc., are written every day. Genuine clinical depression is a very serious condition caused by serotonin levels in the brain. I am not certain, however, that every diagnosis of depression is the real thing. My guess is that about 10 percent of the people taking ...
5 comments
Read more

Could Narcolepsy be caused by gluten? :: Kitchen Table Hypothesis

Kitchen Table Hypothesis from www.zombieinstitute.net - Heidi's new site It's commonly known that a severe allergy to peanuts can cause death within minutes. What if there were an allergy that were delayed for hours and caused people to fall asleep instead? That is what I believe is happening in people with Narcolepsy. Celiac disease is an allergy to gliadin, a specific gluten protein found in grains such as wheat, barley and rye. In celiac disease the IgA antigliadin antibody is produced after ingestion of gluten. It attacks the gluten, but also mistakenly binds to and creates an immune reaction in the cells of the small intestine causing severe damage. There is another form of gluten intolerance, Dermatitis Herpetiformis, in which the IgA antigliadin bind to proteins in the skin, causing blisters, itching and pain. This can occur without any signs of intestinal damage. Non-celiac gluten sensitivity is a similar autoimmune reaction to gliadin, however it usually involves the...
19 comments
Read more

Blue-blocking Glasses To Improve Sleep And ADHD Symptoms Developed

Blue-blocking Glasses To Improve Sleep And ADHD Symptoms Developed Scientists at John Carroll University, working in its Lighting Innovations Institute, have developed an affordable accessory that appears to reduce the symptoms of ADHD. Their discovery also has also been shown to improve sleep patterns among people who have difficulty falling asleep. The John Carroll researchers have created glasses designed to block blue light, therefore altering a person's circadian rhythm, which leads to improvement in ADHD symptoms and sleep disorders. […] How the Glasses Work The individual puts on the glasses a couple of hours ahead of bedtime, advancing the circadian rhythm. The special glasses block the blue rays that cause a delay in the start of the flow of melatonin, the sleep hormone. Normally, melatonin flow doesn't begin until after the individual goes into darkness. Studies indicate that promoting the earlier release of melatonin results in a marked decline of ADHD symptoms. Bett...
Post a Comment
Read more