2026-05-27 イェール大学
＜関連情報＞
- https://news.yale.edu/2026/05/27/monkey-see-monkey-do-study-sheds-light-cooperative-decision-making
- https://www.cell.com/neuron/abstract/S0896-6273(26)00317-X
霊長類の協力行動および神経学的特徴の根底には、標準的な意思決定計算が存在する Canonical decision computations underlie behavioral and neural signatures of cooperation in primates
Weikang Shi ∙ Olivia C. Meisner ∙ Monika P. Jadi ∙ Steve W.C. Chang ∙ Anirvan S. Nandy
Neuron Published:May 11, 2026
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2026.04.022
Graphical abstract
Highlights
- Marmosets use gaze-dependent social evidence accumulation to coordinate cooperation
- A gaze-dependent drift-diffusion model (DDM) best explains cooperative actions
- dmPFC ramping activity scales with the strength of the sampled social evidence
- The geometry of the dmPFC population trajectory reflects the strength of the evidence
Summary
Successful cooperation requires the dynamic integration of social cues. However, the neural mechanisms supporting this complex process remain unknown. Here, we reveal that the primate dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC) implements a gaze-dependent social evidence accumulation process to guide cooperative decisions in freely moving marmoset dyads. A drift-diffusion process in which the partner’s action variability is accumulated through social gaze best explains the cooperative actions of the actor. Single-neuron recordings in the dmPFC revealed a direct neural correlate: the slope of predictive ramping activity mapped directly onto the rate of evidence accumulation, while baseline firing, modulated by prior outcomes, mapped onto the initial bias. At the population level, the geometry of dmPFC neural trajectories reflected the strength of social evidence and was linked to cooperative success. Together, these findings establish a multi-level neural mechanism for transforming active sensing into a decision variable, linking a canonical computation to cooperative behavior in a naturalistic setting.
