A common mechanism underlies changes of mind about decisions and confidence
- Cambridge University, United Kingdom
- Columbia University, United States
- New York University, United States
Abstract
Decisions are accompanied by a degree of confidence that a selected option is correct. A sequential sampling framework explains the speed and accuracy of decisions and extends naturally to the confidence that the decision rendered is likely to be correct. However, discrepancies between confidence and accuracy suggest that confidence might be supported by mechanisms dissociated from the decision process. Here we show that this discrepancy can arise naturally because of simple processing delays. When participants were asked to report choice and confidence simultaneously, their confidence, reaction time and a perceptual decision about motion were explained by bounded evidence accumulation. However, we also observed revisions of the initial choice and/or confidence. These changes of mind were explained by a continuation of the mechanism that led to the initial choice. Our findings extend the sequential sampling framework to vacillation about confidence and invites caution in interpreting dissociations between confidence and accuracy.
Article and author information
Author details
Reviewing Editor
- Timothy EJ Behrens, University College London, United Kingdom
Ethics
Human subjects: The Cambridge Psychology Research Ethics Committee approved the experimental protocol, and subjects gave written informed consent.
Version history
- Received: October 9, 2015
- Accepted: January 31, 2016
- Accepted Manuscript published: February 1, 2016 (version 1)
- Version of Record published: March 7, 2016 (version 2)
Copyright
© 2016, van den Berg et al.
This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License permitting unrestricted use and redistribution provided that the original author and source are credited.
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A common mechanism underlies changes of mind about decisions and confidence
eLife 5:e12192.
https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.12192
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