A Neurally-Inspired Model of Habit and its Empirical Implications

The busy human brain creates fast, low-cost habits when choices are frequent and are providing stable rewards. Using evidence from animal learning and cognitive neuroscience, we model a two-controller system in which habit and model-based choice coexist. The key inputs are reward prediction error (RPE) and the absolute magnitude of RPE. As the RPEs from a choice move toward zero, habits form. When the magnitude of averaged RPE exceeds a threshold, habits are overridden by model-based choice. The model contrasts with long-standing approach in economics (which relies on complementarity of consumption choice) and has several interesting properties that can be tested with behavioral and cognitive data.

日期：
演讲者：
Colin Camerer
所属机构：
California Institute of Technology