surprise_utility

Although models of reference-dependence have become quite influential in behavioral economics, and are capable of explaining some puzzling phenomena, the fundamental assumption that experienced utility depends on both consumption and surprise has not been tested. This project seeks to determine whether Koszegi-Rabin news utility preferences (Koszegi and Rabin, 2009) have a biologically feasible foundation. We use an fMRI experiment where we manipulate subjects' expectations about the probability of viewing a rewarding stimulus. We look at value signals encodedin the orbitofrontal cortex at the time of consumption to see if these signals depend solely on consumption utility, or if they are also modulated by surprise utility. Winner of the 2022 Chen Graduate Innovator Grant.