Distinct neural dynamics underlying risk and ambiguity during valued‐based decision making

• Published in: Psychophysiology 2023-03, Vol.60 (3), p.e14201-n/a
• Main Authors: Deng, Leyou, Li, Qi, Zhang, Mang, Shi, Puyu, Zheng, Ya
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: ambiguity; Decision Making; ERPs; Evoked Potentials; Humans; Probability; RewP; Risk; SPN; Uncertainty
• ISSN: 0048-5772; 1469-8986; 1540-5958
• DOI: 10.1111/psyp.14201

Uncertainty can be fractioned into risk and ambiguity psychologically and neurobiologically. However, whether and how risk and ambiguity are dissociated in terms of neural dynamics during value‐based decision making remain elusive. The present event‐related potential (ERP) study addressed these issues by asking participants to perform a wheel‐of‐fortune task either during a risky context (Experiment 1; N = 30) where outcome probability was known or during an ambiguous context (Experiment 2; N = 30) where outcome probability was unknown. Results revealed that the cue‐P3 was more enhanced for risk versus ambiguity during the anticipatory phase, whereas the RewP was more increased for ambiguity than risk during the consummatory phase. Moreover, the SPN and the fb‐P3 components were further modulated by the levels of risk and ambiguity, respectively. These findings demonstrate a neural dissociation between risk and ambiguity, which unfolds from the anticipatory phase to the consummatory phase. Our findings add a new perspective on neural dissociation between risk and ambiguity during value‐based decision making. We provide evidence that risk processing is associated uniquely with anticipatory ERPs, whereas ambiguity processing is more associated with consummatory ERPs. Our results highlight the multi‐phase nature of neural dissociation between risk and ambiguity.