A population representation of the confidence in a decision in the parietal cortex
Summary: Many decisions arise from a race between competing evidence accumulation processes that terminate upon reaching a threshold. We ask whether neurons supporting this accumulation also encode confidence—whether a choice is correct or incorrect. Monkeys performed a reaction-time random dot moti...
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| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2025-04-01
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| Series: | Cell Reports |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211124725002979 |
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| author | Ariel Zylberberg Michael N. Shadlen |
| author_facet | Ariel Zylberberg Michael N. Shadlen |
| author_sort | Ariel Zylberberg |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Summary: Many decisions arise from a race between competing evidence accumulation processes that terminate upon reaching a threshold. We ask whether neurons supporting this accumulation also encode confidence—whether a choice is correct or incorrect. Monkeys performed a reaction-time random dot motion task while populations of neurons were recorded from the lateral intraparietal (LIP) area. Shortly before the choice report, LIP neurons with response fields overlapping the contralateral choice target (Tin neurons) convey information about choice accuracy. We show that this information would give rise to the behavioral signatures of confidence observed in humans. These findings are surprising because the activity of Tin neurons just before the report is, on average, independent of reaction time and motion strength—strong predictors of accuracy. This tension is resolved by considering the heterogeneity of neuronal responses across the population of Tin neurons. We conclude that neurons representing evidence accumulation may inform a decision-maker’s confidence. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-388da2e12e414b4b9c03bf70cf05bf08 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2211-1247 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Cell Reports |
| spelling | doaj-art-388da2e12e414b4b9c03bf70cf05bf082025-08-20T03:08:37ZengElsevierCell Reports2211-12472025-04-0144411552610.1016/j.celrep.2025.115526A population representation of the confidence in a decision in the parietal cortexAriel Zylberberg0Michael N. Shadlen1Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA; Virtual Confidence and Metacognition Laboratory, New York, NY, USA; Corresponding authorMortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA; The Kavli Institute for Brain Science, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Chevy Chase, MD, USA; Grossman Center for the Statistics of the Mind, Columbia University, New York, NY, USASummary: Many decisions arise from a race between competing evidence accumulation processes that terminate upon reaching a threshold. We ask whether neurons supporting this accumulation also encode confidence—whether a choice is correct or incorrect. Monkeys performed a reaction-time random dot motion task while populations of neurons were recorded from the lateral intraparietal (LIP) area. Shortly before the choice report, LIP neurons with response fields overlapping the contralateral choice target (Tin neurons) convey information about choice accuracy. We show that this information would give rise to the behavioral signatures of confidence observed in humans. These findings are surprising because the activity of Tin neurons just before the report is, on average, independent of reaction time and motion strength—strong predictors of accuracy. This tension is resolved by considering the heterogeneity of neuronal responses across the population of Tin neurons. We conclude that neurons representing evidence accumulation may inform a decision-maker’s confidence.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211124725002979CP: Neuroscience |
| spellingShingle | Ariel Zylberberg Michael N. Shadlen A population representation of the confidence in a decision in the parietal cortex Cell Reports CP: Neuroscience |
| title | A population representation of the confidence in a decision in the parietal cortex |
| title_full | A population representation of the confidence in a decision in the parietal cortex |
| title_fullStr | A population representation of the confidence in a decision in the parietal cortex |
| title_full_unstemmed | A population representation of the confidence in a decision in the parietal cortex |
| title_short | A population representation of the confidence in a decision in the parietal cortex |
| title_sort | population representation of the confidence in a decision in the parietal cortex |
| topic | CP: Neuroscience |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211124725002979 |
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