Cited by 109Neural and Behavioral Psychology StudiesDecision-Making and Behavioral EconomicsMemory and Neural Mechanisms

Behavior- and Modality-General Representation of Confidence in Orbitofrontal Cortex

Open access
Masset, Paul, Ott, Torben, Lak, Armin, Hirokawa, Junya, Kepecs, Adam·2020·Cell

Abstract

Every decision we make is accompanied by a sense of confidence about its likely outcome. This sense informs subsequent behavior, such as investing more-whether time, effort, or money-when reward is more certain. A neural representation of confidence should originate from a statistical computation and predict confidence-guided behavior. An additional requirement for confidence representations to support metacognition is abstraction: they should emerge irrespective of the source of information and inform multiple confidence-guided behaviors. It is unknown whether neural confidence signals meet these criteria. Here, we show that single orbitofrontal cortex neurons in rats encode statistical decision confidence irrespective of the sensory modality, olfactory or auditory, used to make a choice. The activity of these neurons also predicts two confidence-guided behaviors: trial-by-trial time investment and cross-trial choice strategy updating. Orbitofrontal cortex thus represents decision confidence consistent with a metacognitive process that is useful for mediating confidence-guided economic decisions.

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.cell.2020.05.022

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  • Confidence signatures in OFC generalize across both auditory and olfactory decisions.

    “and generalize across both auditory and olfactory decisions (Masset et al. 2020)”

    From Metacognition and Confidence: A Review and Synthesis (2024) · cites this paper as Masset et al. 2020

  • Confidence signatures in OFC predict confidence-related behavior (waiting for a reward, conditional on performance).

    “Confidence signatures in OFC predict confidence-related behavior (waiting for a reward, conditional on performance) and generalize across both auditory and olfactory decisions (Masset et al. 2020)”

    From Metacognition and Confidence: A Review and Synthesis (2024) · cites this paper as Masset et al. 2020

  • Modality-independent confidence signals exist in rodent and human prefrontal cortex, supporting a common currency for confidence.

    “A common currency for confidence may be supported by modality-independent confidence signals in rodent (Masset et al. 2020) and human (Morales et al. 2018) prefrontal cortex.”

    From Metacognition and Confidence: A Review and Synthesis (2024) · cites this paper as Masset et al. 2020

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Research works printed but not linked: 2

  1. Dunlosky J, and Metcalfe J (2009). Metacognition (Sage Publications).
  2. Pouget A, Dayan P, and Zemel RS (2003). Inference and Computation with population Codes. Annu. Rev. Neurosci 26, 381– 410. 12704222

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Authors
Masset, P., Ott, T., Lak, A., Hirokawa, J., & Kepecs, A.
Affiliations
  • Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (US)
  • Washington University in St. Louis (US)
  • University of Oxford (GB)
Venue
Cell
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2020-07
Volume
182
Issue
1
Pages
112-126.e18
ISSN
0092-8674 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W3034170934
Cited by
109
References
98
Citations by year
2026: 10 · 2025: 22 · 2024: 17 · 2023: 17 · 2022: 12 · 2021: 22 · 2020: 8 · 2019: 1
FWCI
7.93
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Cell (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
  • Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Institutional Repository (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) (submittedVersion)
Funders
National Institutes of Health
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
  • Social Sciences › Decision Sciences › General Decision Sciences › Decision-Making and Behavioral Economics
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Memory and Neural Mechanisms
Keywords
decision confidence, orbitofrontal cortex, metacognition, single-unit recording, time investment, statistical decision making
MeSH terms
Animals, Behavior, Choice Behavior, Decision Making, Models, Biological, Neurons, Sensation, Task Performance and Analysis, Time Factors, Prefrontal Cortex, Rats, Long-Evans

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