However, our data chart clearly the emergence of optimal decision making as observers are offered a chance to become familiar with the category statistics. This notion was also supported by fMRI analyses, which identified voxels

that responded to the interaction between volatility and decision Selleck ABT 199 entropy predicted by the Bayesian model in the ACC. One interpretation of these data is that the ACC contributes to choices that are informed by information about the rate of change of the environment, in line with previous lesion (Kennerley et al., 2006) and fMRI (Behrens et al., 2007) work implicating this region in making optimal use of past reward history to inform decisions. Analysis of brain activity at the time of the feedback also supported this contention. Using an ROI-based analysis, we found that the ACC region activated in concert with environmental volatility at the time of feedback in Behrens et al. (2007) was sensitive to “optimal updating” signals defined by the three-way interaction among angular update, estimated variability, and volatility. One

interpretation consistent with previous work is that at outcome time, the volatility of the environment is encoded in the ACC in a fashion that dictates the extent that subjects will learn from each outcome (Behrens et al., 2007); in the decision period, ACC activity is only modulated by the optimal level of uncertainty at times when subjects employ this optimal strategy (in this task, when the environment

is stable). We additionally Onalespib chemical structure found strong optimal updating signals at the time of feedback in the posterior cingulate gyrus, a brain region implicated in the representation of uncertainty about rewards (McCoy and Platt, 2005), and in the choice to make exploratory decisions (Pearson et al., 2009) in the nonhuman primate. Admittedly, our current data do not indicate the mechanism by which, or the cortical locus at which, participants switch between strategies. Indeed, one possible Astemizole candidate is the anterior insular cortex, where decision-related fMRI signals were predicted by all three strategies, and which has been previously implicated in controlling the switch between behavioral modes (Sridharan et al., 2008). However, this remains a topic for future investigation. Together, our findings suggest that participants adapt their decision strategy to the demands of the environment, moving toward statistically optimal behavior when the environment permits learning about stable and predictable categories (Nisbett et al., 1983). By contrast, in volatile environment, agents adopt a cognitive strategy that is fast and computationally frugal, and relies on maintenance processes subserved by the PFC.