Earlier Development of the Accumbens Relative to Orbitofrontal Cortex Might Underlie Risk-Taking Behavior in Adolescents
Cornell University · Resonance Research (United States)
Abstract
Adolescence has been characterized by risk-taking behaviors that can lead to fatal outcomes. This study examined the neurobiological development of neural systems implicated in reward-seeking behaviors. Thirty-seven participants (7-29 years of age) were scanned using event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging and a paradigm that parametrically manipulated reward values. The results show exaggerated accumbens activity, relative to prefrontal activity in adolescents, compared with children and adults, which appeared to be driven by different time courses of development for these regions. Accumbens activity in adolescents looked like that of adults in both extent of activity and sensitivity to reward…
Citation impact
- FWCI
- 15.32
- Percentile
- 100%
- References
- 71
Authors
7Topics & keywords
- Orbitofrontal cortex
- Psychology
- Nucleus accumbens
- Functional magnetic resonance imaging
- Prefrontal cortex
- Neural activity
- Reward system
- Developmental psychology