Temporally organized representations of reward and risk in the human brain

Vincent Man (), Jeffrey Cockburn, Oliver Flouty, Phillip E. Gander, Masahiro Sawada, Christopher K. Kovach, Hiroto Kawasaki, Hiroyuki Oya, Matthew A. Howard and John P. O’Doherty
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Vincent Man: California Institute of Technology
Jeffrey Cockburn: California Institute of Technology
Oliver Flouty: University of South Florida
Phillip E. Gander: University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics
Masahiro Sawada: University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics
Christopher K. Kovach: University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics
Hiroto Kawasaki: University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics
Hiroyuki Oya: University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics
Matthew A. Howard: University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics
John P. O’Doherty: California Institute of Technology

Nature Communications, 2024, vol. 15, issue 1, 1-16

Abstract: Abstract The value and uncertainty associated with choice alternatives constitute critical features relevant for decisions. However, the manner in which reward and risk representations are temporally organized in the brain remains elusive. Here we leverage the spatiotemporal precision of intracranial electroencephalography, along with a simple card game designed to elicit the unfolding computation of a set of reward and risk variables, to uncover this temporal organization. Reward outcome representations across wide-spread regions follow a sequential order along the anteroposterior axis of the brain. In contrast, expected value can be decoded from multiple regions at the same time, and error signals in both reward and risk domains reflect a mixture of sequential and parallel encoding. We further highlight the role of the anterior insula in generalizing between reward prediction error and risk prediction error codes. Together our results emphasize the importance of neural dynamics for understanding value-based decisions under uncertainty.

Date: 2024
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-46094-1

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