"Temporal Discounting of Reward and its Link to Control of Movements"

Reza Shadmehr, PhD - Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Professor of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University

Faculty host: Lena Ting, PhD

Abstract:
Deciding how vigorously to move entails a compromise between moving slowly, to ensure low movement variability, and moving quickly to hasten the acquisition of reward. We propose a new framework for describing how the motor system resolves this dilemma based on the principle of maximizing the rate of reward – equivalent to a hyperbolic discounting of future reward. This normative principle generates the novel prediction that movement vigor will be influenced by the interval between movements. We find a remarkable correspondence between the predictions of the rate of reward theory and experimental data. Our results allow us to reject alternative forms of discounting such as exponential discounting as well as all previous models of motor control in which a movement is considered in isolation. We suggest that there exists a single cost, rate of reward, which may account for a range of behaviors from elementary movements to cognitive decision making.

The Bioengineering Seminar Series is a joint seminar series between IBB and the BME department. Seminars are held on Tuesdays or Thursdays between 11am-12pm in IBB room 1128 unless otherwise indicated.