Objective
How much flavour do we give up in pursuit of a healthier choice, and how many extra minutes of commute do we sacrifice in fostering a more sustainable future? Daily decisions involve navigating multiattribute tradeoffs by assigning weights to different attributes. Understanding the mechanisms underlying attribute weighting is key to explaining and predicting choice behaviour. However, these mechanisms are poorly understood.
Past research has examined how people adjust attribute weights in response to shifts in goals or in the context. Beyond induced shifts, it is unknown whether attribute weights maintain stability in stationary contexts, from one decision to the next. My central hypothesis is that, akin to other representations in the brain (e.g. memories), attribute weights are in constant flux, being controlled by inherently noisy and dynamical processes. This project aims to unravel these processes.
Attribute weights are inherently subjective and not directly observable. Reading them out from single choices is impossible, as choices are perturbed by noise and influenced by normatively irrelevant factors. To overcome this limitation, I will use multiattribute choice tasks with magnetoencephalography and, focusing on decision-relevant neural signals, I will separate the influence of attribute weights from the distorting influence of irrelevant factors. This will enable me to read-out attribute weights at each decision, and to subsequently chart their temporal dynamics across successive multiattribute decisions.
Understanding the dynamics of attribute weighting will offer mechanistic insights on how preferences change, informing century-old debates on the nature of preferences. These insights will be valuable to clinicians seeking to understand pathological preference variability or persistence (e.g. in addiction); and to policy makers probing whether specific consumer tradeoffs (e.g. between monetary and environmental attributes) are stable or changeable.
Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC)
MAIN PROGRAMME
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-ERC - HORIZON ERC Grants
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) ERC-2024-COG
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
D02 CX56 Dublin
Ireland
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.