Latest

decision making

$This shows a woman and math symbols.$

·May 20, 2025·4 min read

Modeling Human Behavior with Math

A new study shows that mathematical models can shape human decisions more effectively than traditional psychological strategies. Researchers introduced “choice engineering,” a data-driven alternative to “choice architecture,” which relies on heuristics and intuition. In a global academic challenge, models like CATIE—designed to reflect real behavioral trends—outperformed both intuitive strategies and standard machine learning tools.

Featured Neuroethics Neuroscience

·May 6, 2025·3 min read

Bodily Awareness Guides Moral Decision-Making

New research shows that people’s sensitivity to their internal bodily signals influences how closely they align with group moral preferences in dilemmas. Participants who were more aware of their heartbeat and internal states tended to make ethical choices that matched the group consensus.

This shows a brain and a person at a cross roads.

Featured Neuroscience

·April 25, 2025·6 min read

Serotonin Neurons Challenge Old Views of Brain Function

Serotonin neurons in the brainstem are not independent, as once thought, but interact to influence decision-making. Researchers found that clusters of serotonin neurons compete and collaborate, shaping when and how serotonin is released throughout the brain.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·April 17, 2025·5 min read

Natural Disaster Trauma Disrupts Brain’s Decision Circuits

Survivors of the 2018 Camp Fire in California exhibit long-term cognitive changes, particularly in decision-making. Participants directly exposed to the wildfire showed reduced ability to choose long-term rewards and displayed hyperactivity in brain regions tied to rumination.

Featured Neuroscience

·April 15, 2025·5 min read

Mild Brain Stimulation Alters Decision-Making Speed and Flexibility

A new study shows that transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), a non-invasive brain stimulation method, can influence how quickly and flexibly people make decisions. Researchers targeted the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex—key in planning and action—while participants performed simultaneous visual and auditory tasks.

This shows two people shopping and brains.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·April 8, 2025·4 min read

Brain Scans Reveal Political Leanings During Grocery Shopping

Researchers have discovered that people’s political affiliation can be identified with nearly 80% accuracy based on brain activity while making routine decisions like buying milk and eggs. Although actual purchasing choices did not differ between Democrats and Republicans, the underlying neural patterns diverged significantly.

Featured Neuroscience

·April 1, 2025·6 min read

AI Thinks Like Us: Flaws, Biases, and All, Study Finds

A new study finds that ChatGPT, while excellent at logic and math, exhibits many of the same cognitive biases as humans when making subjective decisions. In tests for common judgment errors, the AI showed overconfidence, risk aversion, and even the classic gambler’s fallacy, though it avoided other typical human mistakes like base-rate neglect.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·March 5, 2025·4 min read

Anxiety and Apathy Affect Decision-Making in Opposite Ways

A new study reveals that anxiety and apathy lead to fundamentally different patterns in decision-making under uncertainty. Anxious individuals perceive their environment as highly volatile, leading them to explore more options, especially after negative outcomes.

This shows a person drinking and a brain.

Featured Neuroscience

·March 4, 2025·6 min read

Future Thinking Training Reduces Impulsivity

A new study finds that training people to think about specific future events can reduce impulsivity and improve decision-making. Researchers used fMRI scans to show that practicing episodic future thinking increased connectivity in key brain regions, making participants less likely to choose immediate rewards over long-term benefits.

Featured Neuroscience

·February 26, 2025·3 min read

Brain Activity Can Predict Crowd Behavior

A new study shows that brain activity in small groups can predict large-scale decision-making. Using fMRI, researchers found that activity in the Nucleus Accumbens (NAcc) during initial affective responses consistently aligned with choices made by thousands of online participants.

Featured Neuroscience

·February 20, 2025·7 min read

Brain’s Hidden Circuitry for Risk and Reward Uncovered

Researchers have identified two distinct groups of neurons that help the brain evaluate risk and reward in decision-making. These neurons, located in the ventral striatum, separately process better-than-expected and worse-than-expected outcomes.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·January 9, 2025·6 min read

How We Make Life’s Toughest Choices

A new study presents a novel framework for understanding transformative life decisions, focusing on their complexity and emotional impact. Researchers identified five key dimensions—conflicting cues, change of self, uncertain experiential value, irreversibility, and risk—that shape these decisions.

1 2 3 … 28

decision making

Modeling Human Behavior with Math

Bodily Awareness Guides Moral Decision-Making

Serotonin Neurons Challenge Old Views of Brain Function

Natural Disaster Trauma Disrupts Brain’s Decision Circuits

Mild Brain Stimulation Alters Decision-Making Speed and Flexibility

Brain Scans Reveal Political Leanings During Grocery Shopping

AI Thinks Like Us: Flaws, Biases, and All, Study Finds

Anxiety and Apathy Affect Decision-Making in Opposite Ways

Future Thinking Training Reduces Impulsivity

Brain Activity Can Predict Crowd Behavior

Brain’s Hidden Circuitry for Risk and Reward Uncovered

How We Make Life’s Toughest Choices

Sleep Quality Shapes Jealousy in Insecure Relationships

Why Some People Hear Better in Noise Than Others

Aphantasia: Why Some Minds Are Blind to Images

Listening to the Voices of Autism

Subscribe