Let a monkey do your bidding: Reward valuation in an auction-like mechanism

Abstract

Economic choice is thought to involve the elicitation of the subjective values of the choice options. Thus far, value estimation in animals has relied upon stochastic choices between multiple options presented in repeated trials and expressed from averages of dozens of trials. However, subjective reward valuations are made moment-to-moment and do not always require alternative options; their consequences are usually felt immediately. Here we describe a Becker-DeGroot-Marschak (BDM) auction-like mechanism that provides more direct and simple valuations with immediate consequences. The BDM encourages agents to truthfully reveal their true subjective value in individual choices (incentive compatibility). Monkeys reliably placed well-ranked BDM bids for up to five juice volumes while paying from a water budget. The bids closely approximated the average subjective values estimated with conventional binary choices, thus demonstrating procedural invariance and aligning with the wealth of knowledge acquired with these less direct estimation methods. The feasibility of BDM bidding in monkeys paves the way for an analysis of subjective neuronal value signals in single trials rather than from averages; the feasibility also bridges the gap to the increasingly used BDM method in human neuroeconomics. SignificanceThe subjective economic value of rewards cannot be measured directly but must be inferred from observable behavior. Until now, the estimation method in animals was rather complex and required comparison between several choice options during repeated choices; thus, such methods did not respect the imminence of the outcome from individual choices. However, human economic research has developed a simple auction-like procedure that can reveal in a direct and immediate manner the true subjective value in individual choices (Becker-DeGroot-Marschak, BDM, mechanism). The current study implemented this mechanism in rhesus monkeys and demonstrates its usefulness for eliciting meaningful value estimates of liquid rewards. The mechanism allows future neurophysiological assessment of subjective reward value signals in single trials of controlled animal tasks.