Homo economicus vs the reptilian brain

Abstract

The analysis of human behaviour has been a topic of interest for many decades, with research evolving essentially independently across a number of disciplines. While “traditional” choice modellers have grounded their work in micro-economic theory and assumptions about rationality, behavioural economists have focussed on demonstrating the existence of departures from this homo economicus model of behaviour. Mathematical psychologists in turn have focussed on the development of model structures that accommodate some of these apparent irrational phenomena such as context effects and preference reversals. Finally, neuro-scientists have attempted to create links between behavioural processes and neurological processes, with a strong emphasis on neuro-imaging research. This presentation attempts to build bridges between these fields, showing the benefits that can be achieved in traditional choice modelling by operationalising models from mathematical psychology and taking ideas from neuro-science outside the lab. Specifically, the talk makes the case that if choice modellers are willing to let go of the micro-economic foundation of their models, they should look further afield than making minor changes such as turning to models of regret minimisation. Similarly, to take full advantage of models from mathematical psychology, especially in terms of their dynamic nature, new types of data are required, and this creates an ideal opportunity for merging choice modelling with mathematical psychology and neuro-science. The presentation includes insights into the improved prediction performance of models from mathematical psychology and shows initial results from an innovative virtual reality cycling experiment involving EEG scanning of participant’s neural activities.