Orbitofrontal Cortex Is Required for Optimal Waiting Based on Decision Confidence

Abstract

SUMMARY Confidence judgments are a central example of metacognition—knowledge about one’s own cognitive processes. According to this metacognitive view, confidence reports are generated by a second-order monitoring process based on the quality of internal representations about beliefs. Although neural correlates of decision confidence have been recently identified in humans and other animals, it is not well understood whether there are brain areas specifically important for confidence monitoring. To address this issue, we designed a postdecision temporal wagering task in which rats expressed choice confidence by the amount of time they were willing to wait for reward. We found that orbitofrontal cortex inactivation disrupts waiting-based confidence reports without affecting decision accuracy. Furthermore, we show that a normative model can quantitatively account for waiting times based on the computation of decision confidence. These results establish an anatomical locus for a metacognitive report, confidence judgment, distinct from the processes required for perceptual decisions.

Temporal metacognition as the decoding of self-generated brain dynamics

“…In support of this theoretical work, pulvinar neurons have been shown to encode confidence, a second order variable, independently of other areas processing first order variables; this study thus suggested that one population of neurons can read-out neural population that encode primary sensory variables (Komura et al, 2013). Other studies have also suggested that particular brain regions independently code for first and second order signals (Lak et al, 2014). In line with these ideas, the mapping between β power and duration interval may be realized via networking through higher order brain regions.…”

Confidence as Bayesian Probability: From Neural Origins to Behavior

“…In waiting-time paradigms, reward is delivered for correct decisions, but only after a delay and the subject has the opportunity to initiate a new trial instead of waiting. Waiting after an error thus has an opportunity cost, so willingness to wait should, normatively, depend on the estimated accuracy (Kepecs et al, 2008;Lak et al, 2014). For more examples and details on paradigms, see Kepecs and Mainen (2012) and for a review of comparative studies, see Smith et al (2003).…”

Feeling, learning from and being aware of inner states: interoceptive dimensions in neurodegeneration and stroke

“…Finally, interoceptive awareness has been associated with the ACC, IC, prefrontal cortex (PFC, Brodmann area 10 (BA10) [26,27]) and OFC [28,29]. Although this metacognitive dimension has not been examined in neurological populations, impaired awareness and diminished insight are core features of dementia [30,31].…”