Deep brain stimulation study models impulsivity and risk aversion
Medical Xpress August 29, 2024
Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a neurosurgical procedure that entails the implantation of electrodes in specific brain regions, to subsequently stimulate these regions via high frequency electric impulses. This procedure is a highly effective therapeutic intervention for various severe neurological and psychiatric disorders, including Parkinson’s disease and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
Researchers at Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine and University of Cambridge recently used DBS to investigate two opposite behavioral patterns in decision-making, namely impulsivity and risk aversion.
Their paper, published in Nature Mental Health, pin-points new objective (i.e., generally applicable to all humans) and subjective (i.e., differing between different individuals) markers of risk-taking.
“Why do we make impulsive decisions that are risky too quickly, disinhibited or choosing immediate...