Work

Why the brain talks to itself: sources of error in emotional prediction

Year: 2009

Type: review

Abstract: People typically choose pleasure over pain. But how do they know which of these their choices will entail? The brain generates mental simulations (previews) of future events, which produce affective reactions (premotions), which are then used as a basis for forecasts (predictions) about the future event's emotional consequences. Research shows that this process leads to systematic errors of prediction. We review evidence indicating that these errors can be traced to five sources.

Source: Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences

DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2008.0305

Authors: Daniel T. Gilbert, Timothy D. Wilson

Institutions: Harvard University, University of Virginia

Language: English

Topic: Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies

Subfield: Cognitive Neuroscience

Field: Neuroscience

Domain: Life Sciences

Open Access status: green

Funder: National Science Foundation

Award: Collaborative Research: Dual Standards in Affective Forecasting and Experience