Separating desire from prediction of outcome value.
Trends Cogn Sci
; 27(10): 932-946, 2023 10.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-37543439
ABSTRACT
Individuals typically want what they expect to like, often based on memories of previous positive experiences. However, in some situations desire can decouple completely from memories and from learned predictions of outcome value. The potential for desire to separate from prediction arises from independent operating rules that control motivational incentive salience. Incentive salience, or 'wanting', is a type of mesolimbic desire that evolved for adaptive goals, but can also generate maladaptive addictions. Two proof-of-principle examples are presented here to show how motivational 'wanting' can soar above memory-based predictions of outcome value (i) 'wanting what is remembered to be disgusting', and (ii) 'wanting what is predicted to hurt'. Consequently, even outcomes remembered and predicted to be negatively aversive can become positively 'wanted'. Similarly, in human addictions, people may experience powerful cue-triggered cravings for outcomes that are not predicted to be enjoyable.
Key words
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Reward
/
Behavior, Addictive
Type of study:
Prognostic_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Limits:
Humans
Language:
En
Journal:
Trends Cogn Sci
Journal subject:
PSICOLOGIA
Year:
2023
Document type:
Article