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  • 2014
  • Chapter
  • The Interdisciplinary Science of Consumption

Appetite, Consumption, and Choice in the Human Brain

By: Brian Knutson and Uma R. Karmarkar
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Abstract

Although linked, researchers have long distinguished appetitive from consummatory phases of reward processing. Recent improvements in the spatial and temporal resolution of neuroimaging techniques have allowed researchers to separately visualize different stages of reward processing in humans. These techniques have revealed that evolutionarily conserved circuits related to affect generate distinguishable appetitive and consummatory signals, and that these signals can be used to predict choice and subsequent consumption. Review of the literature surprisingly suggests that appetitive rather than consummatory activity may best predict future choice and consumption. These findings imply that distinguishing appetite from consumption may improve predictions of future choice and illuminate neural components that support the process of decision making.

Citation

Knutson, Brian, and Uma R. Karmarkar. "Appetite, Consumption, and Choice in the Human Brain." Chap. 9 in The Interdisciplinary Science of Consumption, edited by Stephanie D. Preston, Morten L. Kringelbach, and Brian Knutson, 163–184. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2014.
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More from the Authors

    • July 2017
    • Journal of Behavioral Decision Making

    The Impact of 'Display-Set' Options on Decision-Making

    By: Uma R. Karmarkar
    • 2017
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    Blunted Ambiguity Aversion During Cost-Benefit Decisions in Antisocial Individuals

    By: Joshua W. Buckholtz, Uma R. Karmarkar, Shengxuan Ye, Grace M. Brennan and Arielle Baskin-Sommers
    • 2017
    • Faculty Research

    The 4 Minds of the Customer: A Framework for Understanding and Applying the Science of Decision Making

    By: Ryan Hamilton and Uma R. Karmarkar
More from the Authors
  • The Impact of 'Display-Set' Options on Decision-Making By: Uma R. Karmarkar
  • Blunted Ambiguity Aversion During Cost-Benefit Decisions in Antisocial Individuals By: Joshua W. Buckholtz, Uma R. Karmarkar, Shengxuan Ye, Grace M. Brennan and Arielle Baskin-Sommers
  • The 4 Minds of the Customer: A Framework for Understanding and Applying the Science of Decision Making By: Ryan Hamilton and Uma R. Karmarkar
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