Poster #9 - Neural Effects of Stakes and Effort on Learning Across Adolescence

• In Event: Poster Session 18

Abstract

The ability to capitalize on (high versus low) stakes to enhance cognitive control for inhibitory performance develops with age. This ability has been shown to relate to an age-dependent increase in cortico-striatal functional connectivity (Insel et al., 2017). In the current study, we aim to replicate this finding in another task, reinforcement learning, and explore whether this is dependent on effort. In a within-subjects fMRI study, we investigated how (high versus low) stakes affect subsequent learning, and how this is mediated by cortico-striatal functional connectivity across adolescence (N = 156, ages 13 – 25 years). To investigate the effect of effort, we do this for both a high and low effort condition.

We used Bayesian modelling to derive individual trial-wise prediction-error estimates that were fit to each participants’ brain data at the moment of feedback onset. For the functional connectivity analyses we will use (left and right) ventral striatum as seed regions and correlate this with prefrontal cortex ROIs.

Behavioral results indicated that stakes enhanced learning performance in high but not low effort conditions. Furthermore, stakes enhanced learning performance in early but not late adolescence. Preliminary fMRI results indicate that in high effort conditions, high stakes motivate recruitment of brain areas important for learning.

For further analysis of the neural data, we hypothesize that the effect from stakes on learning performance (i.e. prediction-error related neural activity) is mediated by age-dependent cortico-striatal functional connectivity. Additionally, we will check whether this effect differs between high and low effort conditions.

These findings can help improve our understanding of individual variability in adolescent development of motivation to learn, and could help inform educational practice. For example, it could help differentiating motivational approaches (e.g. increasing stakes for tests or not) across different developmental stages.

Authors

• Anne-Wil Kramer, University of Amsterdam
  Presenting Author

• Hilde Huizenga

• Lydia Krabbendam

• Anna Van Duijvenvoorde, Leiden University