The role of ventromedial prefrontal cortex in reward valuation and future thinking during intertemporal choice

摘要: Intertemporal choices require trade-offs between short-term and long-term outcomes. Ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) damage causes steep discounting of future rewards (delay discounting; DD) impoverished episodic thinking (EFT). The role vmPFC in reward valuation, EFT, their interaction during intertemporal choice is still unclear. Here, twelve patients with lesions to forty-one healthy controls chose smallerimmediate larger-delayed while we manipulated magnitude the availability EFT cues. In condition, participants imagined personal events occur at delays associated rewards. We found that DD was steeper compared controls, not modulated by magnitude. However, cues downregulated as well controls. These findings indicate integrity critical for valuation (future) rewards, but instill choice.