title: Reversal learning strategy in adolescence is associated with prefrontal cortex activation.
abstract: Adolescence is a critical maturation period for human cognitive control and executive function. In this study, a large sample of adolescents (n = 85) performed a reversal learning task during functional magnetic resonance imaging. We analyzed behavioral data using a reinforcement learning model to provide individually fitted parameters and imaging data with regard to reward prediction errors (PE). Following a model-based approach, we formed two groups depending on whether individuals tended to update expectations predominantly for the chosen stimulus or also for the unchosen one. These groups significantly differed in their problem behavior score obtained using the child behavior checklist (CBCL) and in a measure of their developmental stage. Imaging results showed that dorsolateral striatal areas covaried with PE. Participants who relied less on learning based on task structure showed less prefrontal activation compared with participants who relied more on task structure. An exploratory analysis revealed that PE-related activity was associated with pubertal development in prefrontal areas, insula and anterior cingulate. These findings support the hypothesis that the prefrontal cortex is implicated in mediating flexible goal-directed behavioral control.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Campus Mitte, Berlin, 10117, Germany.|Center for Social and Affective Neuroscience, Linköping University, Linköping, 58245, Sweden.
authors.forename: Rebecca
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Boehme
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Campus Mitte, Berlin, 10117, Germany.|Center for Adaptive Rationality, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: Robert C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Lorenz
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Campus Mitte, Berlin, 10117, Germany.|NeuroCure Excellence Cluster/Medical Neuroscience, Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: Tobias
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Gleich
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Campus Mitte, Berlin, 10117, Germany.
authors.forename: Lydia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Romund
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Campus Mitte, Berlin, 10117, Germany.
authors.forename: Patricia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Pelz
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Campus Mitte, Berlin, 10117, Germany.
authors.forename: Sabrina
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Golde
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Campus Mitte, Berlin, 10117, Germany.
authors.forename: Eva
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Flemming
authors.affiliation: Center for Social and Affective Neuroscience, Linköping University, Linköping, 58245, Sweden.
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Wold
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Campus Mitte, Berlin, 10117, Germany.|Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany.|Department of Neurology, Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Lorenz
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Deserno
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Campus Mitte, Berlin, 10117, Germany.|Institute of Neurophysiology, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany.|Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Medical School Brandenburg - Campus Neuruppin, Neuruppin, Germany.
authors.forename: Joachim
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Behr
authors.affiliation: Department of Educational Science and Psychology, Freie Universität, Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: Diana
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Raufelder
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Campus Mitte, Berlin, 10117, Germany.
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Heinz
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Campus Mitte, Berlin, 10117, Germany.
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Beck
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000375:Aging; D001931:Brain Mapping; D056344:Executive Function / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006179:Gyrus Cinguli / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D017397:Prefrontal Cortex / Q000502:physiology*; D012054:Reinforcement, Psychology; D012193:Reversal Learning / Q000502:physiology*; D012201:Reward
keywords: adolescents; prediction error; prefrontal cortex; reversal learning