Studying How Brain Stimulation of the Hippocampus and Striatum Influences Decision-Making in Healthy Adults Aged 18 to 40

What this Trial Is About

Researchers are studying how two brain regions, the striatum and the hippocampus, contribute to different decision-making strategies in young, healthy adults aged 18 to 40. The study aims to understand whether the striatum is important for repeating choices linked to past rewards, while the hippocampus helps apply this reasoning to related objects. This research investigates how brain stimulation affects these decision processes. Participants attend four sessions over four consecutive days. On the first day, they learn relationships among seven objects. On the next three days, they perform a decision-making task while receiving non-invasive brain stimulation one day targeting the right hippocampus, another day targeting the striatum, and a third day with a placebo-like control stimulation. The order of stimulation is randomized and blinded. During the task, participants choose between two objects repeatedly, aiming to maximize rewards that change over time but follow learned relationships. Researchers record choices and analyze how stimulation influences decision-making strategies. They also monitor response times, accuracy, stimulation tolerability, and blinding effectiveness. The study helps clarify brain activity roles in decision-making and lasts about four days per participant.

Investigating the Mechanisms of Decision-Making Using Non-Invasive Brain Stimulation