Risks and Rewards

As human beings we live in an unpredictable and complex world. To reach our goals, we are often required to evaluate the costs and benefits of potential actions we could take. Despite the complexities of our environment, we have learned to adapt to the presence of uncertainty in our decisions and generally make choices that best ensure our wellbeing. When faced with a decision, how are we able to compute the most advantageous course of action among a multitude of potential alternatives in an unpredictable environment? How does our brain accomplish this task? Recent advances in neuroscience, particularly in neuroimaging methods such as functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI), have enabled researchers to investigate such complex questions. This book examines how rewards and risks influence the way we behave. The first part of this book reviews recent literature on the neurobiological basis of reward processing. The second part comprises a collection of studies in the fields of neuroeconomics and cognitive neuroscience that investigate the impact of rewards and risks on human behavior and brain function in a variety of decision-making settings.

Autorentext

Jan B. Engelmann received his M.A. in Psychology from the University of St. Andrews, Scotland and his M.S. and Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology from Brown University, USA. He currently conducts research in the field of neuroeconomics and his projects focus on the neurobiological basis of risk attitude in financial decision-making.