Biology subjects

Wedell, D. H.

Publications and source records attributed to Wedell, D. H..

2 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2025

Neural Dynamics of Multiattribute Decision Making Under Choice Overload

The present study examines the neural mechanisms of value-based multiattribute decision making through the lens of choice overload during consumer choice. Two behavioral experiments established that choice sets of a moderate size with nine options were perceived as most optimal compared to choice sets with three and 24 options, and options chosen from the largest set size were judged to be the least satisfying. A functional MRI study then examined how the brain responds to choice sets varying in size and complexity by manipulating the number of options presented as well as the presence of asymmetrically dominated decoy alternatives during a simulated online shopping task. Results showed that the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) activity followed an inverse U-shape as a function of choice set size, peaking for moderately sized choice sets. The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) exhibited a linear trend with choice set size. Trials containing decoy options elicited greater activation of the anterior insula (AIns) and DLPFC. Computational modeling of choice behavior revealed a greater tendency to utilize a simplifying lexicographic decision strategy as decision difficulty increased, and individual differences in decision strategies were reflected in activity of the ACC and AIns. These findings advance understanding of how the brain integrates effort, control, and strategy during complex value-based decisions.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2024

Physiological Processing of Aversiveness in the Mind's Ear: Comparing Audiovisual, Auditory and Imagined Auditory Affective Stimuli

Understanding the somatovisceral responses to auditory affective imagery has important implications in disorders like misophonia. The current study compared physiological responses to aversive and nonaversive states across three modalities: audiovisual, auditory, and auditory imagery. Electromyographic activity over corrugator supercilii (EMGc) and zygomaticus major (EMGz), electrodermal activity (EDA), heart rate (HR), and finger skin temperature (SKT) were measured. There was significant differentiation in EMGc, EDA, and HR deceleration between aversive and nonaversive audiovisual stimuli. EMGc potentiation was the only physiological measure showing consistent differentiation across the three modalities. Cross-modal aversiveness classification results revealed a similar physiological response pattern between audiovisual and auditory modalities. The physiological response pattern during auditory affective imagery was useful for predicting the aversiveness in audiovisual modality but not the other way around. Vividness in auditory imagery correlated with subjective hedonic valence ratings, but not physiological responses. Taken together, the current data suggest that the aversiveness of auditory imagery is differentiable in subjective affective experience and facial muscle potentiation. These results of the physiological responses to imagined aversive sounds in nonclinical population would serve as a comparison baseline for the study of misophonia.

physiology↗