Work

The role of attention in multi attribute decision making

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Real-life decisions typically involve multiple options, each with multiple attributes affecting value. In such complex cases, sequential shifts of attention to specific options and attributes are thought to guide the decision process. We designed a task that allowed us to monitor attention in monkeys engaged in such multi-attribute decisions. We recorded pre-supplementary motor area neurons encoding action value signals reflecting the decision process. Attention guides this process through two mechanisms. First, attention enhances the activity of neurons representing the currently sampled option, independent of the attended option value. Second, attention up-regulates the gain of information integration towards the evolving value estimate for the attended option. In contrast, we found no evidence for a third suggested mechanism, in which only the attended option is represented. Instead, attention influences the ongoing information accumulation and competition between the options by modulating the strength of the value information that drives this circuit.

Source: Nature Communications

DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-66579-x

Authors: Aaron L. Sampson, You-Ping Yang, Marius Usher, Dino J. Levy, Ernst Niebur, Veit Stuphorn

Institutions: Johns Hopkins University, National Defense Medical Center, Tel Aviv University

Language: English

Topic: Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies

Subfield: Cognitive Neuroscience

Field: Neuroscience

Domain: Life Sciences

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $6,990