Most of our decisions have a temporally distributed order, and different choice orders can lead to vastly different experiences. Previously, we found two dominant strategies (favorite-first and favorite-last) in a preference-based serial choice setting. However, the reason why these two opposite behavioral patterns arise remains unclear. Here we developed a novel serial-choice task, using pictures based on attractiveness, to test for a possible shared mechanism with delay discounting, the ‘peak-end’ bias or working-memory capacity. We collected the magnetoencephalography data while serial choice behavior, also collected psychological and clinical metric data on personality, depression, anxiety, and emotion regulation. Again, we found the two dominant selection strategies. However, the results of the delay discounting, peak-end bias, and memory capacity tasks were not related to serial choice, while two key psychological metrics were: emotion regulation and conscientiousness. Favorite-first strategists actually regulated emotions better, suggesting better tolerance of negative outcomes. Whereas participants with more varied strategies across trials were more conscientious, suggesting that they were less willing to settle for a single, simpler strategy. We also found the neural evidence, which indicates the critical role of the first choice in serial choice setting, with the specific frequency, time and area of the MEG signal. Our findings clarify the mechanisms underlying serial choice and show that it may reflect a unique ability to organize choices into sequences of events.
우리는 일상에서 여러 선택들을 하게 되고, 이러한 선택들의 순서는 그로부터 비롯되는 결과에 중요한 영향을 미치곤 한다. 기존의 의사결정 연구들은 대부분 일회적 의사결정을 다루고 있기 때문에 연속적 의사결정의 메커니즘에 대한 이해는 상대적으로 미흡한 수준이다. 본 연구에서는 선호에 기반한 연속적 의사결정과 그 신경작용을 뇌자도를 통해 측정하고, 추가로 그와 연관된 현상들로 추정되는 지연할인, 절정-종결효과, 작업기억 및 감정조절 등 인간의 인지적∙심리적 특성들을 측정하고 비교분석함으로서 연속적 의사결정의 메커니즘을 보다 자세히 밝혀내고자 한다.