RT info:eu-repo/semantics/article
T1 Adolescents' risky decision-making activates neural networks related to social cognition and cognitive control processes
A1 Rodrigo López, María Josefa
A1 Padrón González, Iván
A1 Vega Rodríguez, Manuel de
A1 Ferstl, Evelyn C.
K1 adolescent risk and ambiguous decision-making
K1 dangerous and safe choices
K1 fMRI
K1 decision-making in social context
K1 emotional and social cognitive processing
K1 age and gender differences
AB This study examines by means of functional magnetic resonance imaging the neural mechanisms underlying adolescents’ risk decision-making in social contexts.We hypothesize thatthe social context could engage brain regions associated with social cognition processesand developmental changes are also expected. Sixty participants (adolescents: 17–18, andyoung adults: 21–22 years old) read narratives describing typical situations of decisionmaking in the presence of peers. They were asked to make choices in risky situations(e.g., taking or refusing a drug) or ambiguous situations (e.g., eating a hamburger or ahotdog). Risky as compared to ambiguous scenarios activated bilateral temporoparietaljunction (TPJ), bilateral middle temporal gyrus (MTG), right medial prefrontal cortex, and theprecuneus bilaterally; i.e., brain regions related to social cognition processes, such as selfreflection and theory of mind (ToM). In addition, brain structures related to cognitive controlwere active [right anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), bilateral dorsolateral prefrontal cortex(DLPFC), bilateral orbitofrontal cortex], whereas no significant clusters were obtained inthe reward system (ventral striatum). Choosing the dangerous option involved a furtheractivation of control areas (ACC) and emotional and social cognition areas (temporal pole).Adolescents employed more neural resources than young adults in the right DLPFCand the right TPJ in risk situations. When choosing the dangerous option, young adultsshowed a further engagement in ToM related regions (bilateral MTG) and in motor controlregions related to the planning of actions (pre-supplementary motor area). Finally, theright insula and the right superior temporal gyrus were more activated in women thanin men, suggesting more emotional involvement and more intensive modeling of theothers’ perspective in the risky conditions. These findings call for more comprehensivedevelopmental accounts of decision-making in social contexts that incorporate the role ofemotional and social cognition processes.
YR 2014
FD 2014
LK http://riull.ull.es/xmlui/handle/915/35568
UL http://riull.ull.es/xmlui/handle/915/35568
LA en
DS Repositorio institucional de la Universidad de La Laguna
RD 03-ene-2025