Behavioral and Neuro-EconomicsNeuro-economics has its origins in the two-person bargaining experiments of Elizabeth Hoffman, Kevin McCabe, Stephen Rassenti and Vernon Smith. Under the primary leadership of Professor McCabe this research has now been integrated with the evolutionary psychology perspective, and brain-imaging research designed to explore how the brain works in two-person strategic decision settings. This research received an award by the National Science Foundation under a special Creativity extension, and a new award "Brain Function and Economic Decision Making." Neuro-economics bridges the disciplines of economics, psychology, biology and philosophy. Its focus has been on decision making in experimental two-person strategic interactions motivated by game theoretic principles and the neural evolutionary principles that underpin how the mind/brain functions. The latter derive from diverse sources such as principles of "mind reading" (inferring mental states from the words and actions of others) based on hypothesized mechanisms for intentionality detection, shared attention, and awareness of mental phenomena in others, and brain imaging experiments that serve to connect brain activity to mental states, and to decisions and information processing.
A natural meeting ground for economics and neuroscience is in the study of personal exchange where cooperation yields gains from exchange, but risks defection in the opportunistic self-interest. Such exchanges require reciprocity across time, which in turn is supported by trust, trustworthiness, and a willingness to punish cheaters on perceived social contracts. These in turn depend on mental mechanisms for "mind reading," and for good will accounting in reputation building. Experimental economics provides the interactive games to which these principles apply; brain imaging techniques yield the data for testing hypothesis about how the mind/brain works in solving these problems.
|
