PMID- 29362449
OWN - NLM
STAT- MEDLINE
DCOM- 20180305
LR  - 20181113
IS  - 2041-1723 (Electronic)
IS  - 2041-1723 (Linking)
VI  - 9
IP  - 1
DP  - 2018 Jan 23
TI  - Heuristic and optimal policy computations in the human brain during sequential 
      decision-making.
PG  - 325
LID - 10.1038/s41467-017-02750-3 [doi]
LID - 325
AB  - Optimal decisions across extended time horizons require value calculations over 
      multiple probabilistic future states. Humans may circumvent such complex 
      computations by resorting to easy-to-compute heuristics that approximate optimal 
      solutions. To probe the potential interplay between heuristic and optimal 
      computations, we develop a novel sequential decision-making task, framed as 
      virtual foraging in which participants have to avoid virtual starvation. Rewards 
      depend only on final outcomes over five-trial blocks, necessitating planning over 
      five sequential decisions and probabilistic outcomes. Here, we report model 
      comparisons demonstrating that participants primarily rely on the best available 
      heuristic but also use the normatively optimal policy. FMRI signals in medial 
      prefrontal cortex (MPFC) relate to heuristic and optimal policies and associated 
      choice uncertainties. Crucially, reaction times and dorsal MPFC activity scale 
      with discrepancies between heuristic and optimal policies. Thus, sequential 
      decision-making in humans may emerge from integration between heuristic and 
      optimal policies, implemented by controllers in MPFC.
FAU - Korn, Christoph W
AU  - Korn CW
AD  - Division of Clinical Psychiatry Research, Department of Psychiatry, 
      Psychotherapy, and Psychosomatics; Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, 
      Lengstrasse 31, 8032, Zurich, Switzerland. c.korn@uke.de.
AD  - Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, 
      Zurich, Switzerland. c.korn@uke.de.
AD  - Institute for Systems Neuroscience, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, 
      Martinistrasse 52, 20246, Hamburg, Germany. c.korn@uke.de.
FAU - Bach, Dominik R
AU  - Bach DR
AD  - Division of Clinical Psychiatry Research, Department of Psychiatry, 
      Psychotherapy, and Psychosomatics; Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, 
      Lengstrasse 31, 8032, Zurich, Switzerland.
AD  - Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, 
      Zurich, Switzerland.
AD  - Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, University College London, 12 Queen 
      Square, London, WC1N 3BG, United Kingdom.
LA  - eng
GR  - Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom
PT  - Journal Article
PT  - Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
DEP - 20180123
PL  - England
TA  - Nat Commun
JT  - Nature communications
JID - 101528555
SB  - IM
MH  - Adult
MH  - Brain/*physiology
MH  - Brain Mapping
MH  - Choice Behavior/*physiology
MH  - Decision Making/*physiology
MH  - Feeding Behavior/physiology
MH  - Female
MH  - Heuristics/*physiology
MH  - Humans
MH  - Magnetic Resonance Imaging
MH  - Male
MH  - Photic Stimulation
MH  - Prefrontal Cortex/physiology
MH  - Reaction Time/physiology
MH  - Reward
MH  - Uncertainty
MH  - Young Adult
PMC - PMC5780427
COIS- The authors declare no competing financial interests.
EDAT- 2018/01/25 06:00
MHDA- 2018/03/06 06:00
PMCR- 2018/01/23
CRDT- 2018/01/25 06:00
PHST- 2016/10/28 00:00 [received]
PHST- 2017/12/25 00:00 [accepted]
PHST- 2018/01/25 06:00 [entrez]
PHST- 2018/01/25 06:00 [pubmed]
PHST- 2018/03/06 06:00 [medline]
PHST- 2018/01/23 00:00 [pmc-release]
AID - 10.1038/s41467-017-02750-3 [pii]
AID - 2750 [pii]
AID - 10.1038/s41467-017-02750-3 [doi]
PST - epublish
SO  - Nat Commun. 2018 Jan 23;9(1):325. doi: 10.1038/s41467-017-02750-3.