The neural underpinnings of the interaction between the cognitive control of emotions and value-based decision-making
Human Cognitive and Systems Neuroscience
Final Report Abstract
Experiencing emotions is part of our daily life. Sometimes, these emotions can be intense, and we need to control them. Emotion regulation comprises all extrinsic and intrinsic control processes whereby people monitor, evaluate and modify the occurrence, intensity and duration of emotional reactions. It increases our general well-being, performance at work and personal and professional relationships; deficits in ER are connected to severe psychological disorders such as depression and anxiety. Thus, the aim of the research project was to develop a mechanistic approach to functionally dissect the influence of emotion and emotion regulation on value-based decision-making. The research program was set out to systematically investigate 1) the effect of incidental emotions on value-based decision-making and 2) the modulatory effect of reappraisal of incidental emotions on decision-making. Specifically, we addressed the impact of reappraisal and its neural underpinnings on decision-making under risk (Study I, n=51) and food choices (Study III, n=84). We also conducted two behavioral experiments on the impact of emotion regulation on temporal discounting (Study II, n=15) and outcome evaluation (Study IV, n=12), which did not lead to significant findings. Thus, in a final study we addressed the effect of social proximity on emotion regulation (Study V, n=69). In our experiments, we found that emotion regulation of incidental emotions has positive effects on subsequent decision-making. First of all, we demonstrate that overall, emotion regulation was followed by less risky decisions, which was further reflected in an increase in activation in brain regions in dorsolateral and ventrolateral prefrontal cortex and cingulate cortex (Study I). Second, we show that while our participants preferred healthy foods overall, the regulation of negative emotions led to a reduction of preferences for indulgent foods, similar to effects reported in studies that showed improved dietary choices after directing attention to the healthiness of foods. This is supported by the finding that in ventromedial prefrontal cortex, which reflects preference, the overall signal strength was further modulated by emotion regulation (Study III). These findings suggest that altering incidental emotions using reappraisal strategies impacts on subsequent risk-taking in decision-making and on choosing less comfort food. Moreover, we found that emotion regulation ability is more effective with the help of a friend, as reflected in higher emotion regulation success and an attenuation of amygdala responses, emphasizing the importance of social proximity for emotion regulation (Study V). Our findings contribute to a better understanding of the neural mechanisms supporting effective emotion regulation and its impact on decision-making processes. Understanding the effective use of emotion regulation strategies to reduce negative emotion and increase positive emotion might be crucial to promote resilience.
Publications
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How incidental affect and emotion regulation modulate decision making unde risk. Conference: 2017 5th International Winter Conference on Brain- Computer Interface (BCI)
Heekeren H.R., Schulreich S., Mohr P.N.C., Morawetz C.
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Reappraisal of incidental emotions decreases DLPFC activity during risky decision making. 23rd Annual Meeting of the organization of Human Brain Mapping
Morawetz C, Mohr, NC, Heekeren, H
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Regulating negative emotions affects dietary choice via modulation of value signals in vmPFC. 24th Annual Meeting of the organization of Human Brain Mapping
Morawetz C, Heekeren H, Bode S
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Personality Neuroscience: Individual Differences in value-based decisionmaking. International Society for the Study of Individual Differences (Symposium)
Morawetz C, Basten U
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With a little help from my friends: The role of social proximity in emotion regulation. 25th Annual Meeting of the organization of Human Brain Mapping
Morawetz C, Bode, S
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With a little help from my friends: The role of social proximity in emotion regulation. Society for Affective Science
Morawetz C, Bode, S
