A neural model of valuation and information virality

Abstract

SignificanceWhy do humans share information with others? Large-scale sharing is one of the most prominent social phenomena of the 21st century, with roots in the oldest forms of communication. We argue that expectations of self-related and social consequences of sharing are integrated into a domain-general value signal, representing the value of information sharing, which translates into population-level virality. We analyzed brain responses to New York Times articles in two separate groups of people to predict objectively logged sharing of those same articles around the world (virality). Converging evidence from the two studies supports a unifying, parsimonious neurocognitive framework of mechanisms underlying health news virality; these results may help advance theory, improve predictive models, and inform new approaches to effective intervention.

Neuroimaging, neuromodulation, and population health: the neuroscience of chronic disease prevention

“…Activity in this same value system that is associated with health behavior change also plays a central role in people's decisions to share health information with others. [58][59][60] Finally, brain activity in overlapping regions of the value system in relatively small groups of individuals has also been associated with larger scale health-relevant behaviors such as population-level responses to antismoking campaigns 50,61 and sharing of health news. 60 More recent research has moved beyond the exclusive use of average activity within single brain regions and taken greater advantage of the temporal dynamics that occur across the course of message receipt.…”

“…[58][59][60] Finally, brain activity in overlapping regions of the value system in relatively small groups of individuals has also been associated with larger scale health-relevant behaviors such as population-level responses to antismoking campaigns 50,61 and sharing of health news. 60 More recent research has moved beyond the exclusive use of average activity within single brain regions and taken greater advantage of the temporal dynamics that occur across the course of message receipt. One line of research demonstrates that connectivity between parts of the value system, including the vmPFC and ventral striatum during exposure to health messages, is associated with greater message-consistent behavior change in physical activity 62 and smoking domains 62 and explained additional variance in message-consistent behavior change beyond univariate activity alone.…”

Individual differences in social reward and threat expectancies linked to grey matter volumes in key regions of the social brain

“…124 For example, the level of vmPFC activity when imagining positive vs. negative future scenarios is positively correlated with trait optimism. 118 Of particular relevance to our findings, vmPFC activity to anticipated social feedback is enhanced when participants have positive expectancies about social outcomes 96,125,126 (see also 115 ).…”

“…131 Our finding of positive structural covariance between dmPFC and vmPFC -which likely reflects long term increased functional connectivity 89 -may be because the social context inherent in positive mental constructions enhances their value. 126 It is also possible that the reward value of a simulated event may motivate the degree to which participants engage in mentalizing processes subserved by dmPFC. 132 rGMV in vmPFC and PHC were also correlated with lower STE.…”

Identifying social roles using heterogeneous features in online social networks

“…Lee, Yang, Tsai, & Lai, 2014). More and more marketers start to use social media to promote their products and services (Scholz et al, 2017;Smith, Fischer, & Yongjian, 2012) because of the great benefits they carry including the ability to reach large audience. Naaman, Boase, & Lai, 2010).…”