Decision making
How We Learn Value While Making Quick Decisions
Open access · cc by · source: Europe PMC
Decisions between high-value options are faster because people lower their threshold for making a choice, not because they process information faster.
Key findings
Participants became faster and more accurate as they learned the values of different options. When choosing between two highly rewarding options, participants made decisions faster than when choosing between two low-reward options, even though their accuracy remained the same. This speed increase occurred because participants lowered their decision threshold for attractive options, a process best explained by a model linking learned value directly to the decision boundary.
Methodology
Researchers tested 32 participants in a learning task where they chose between pairs of symbols with different hidden reward values. Over 240 trials, participants received immediate feedback on their choices, while the researchers measured their accuracy and reaction times. The study used these data to test a new mathematical model that combines reinforcement learning with an evidence-accumulation decision process.
Limitations
The study only tested binary choices, meaning the model cannot yet explain how people make decisions when presented with multiple options. It also relied on a relatively small sample of 27 analyzed participants, who were mostly young university students. Finally, the study cannot prove the underlying neural mechanisms behind these decisions, as it only collected behavioral data.
How this study connects
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