Neuromarketing: Neuro- economics
Think: reward, learning and decision-making

To make a decision, a system must assign value to each of its available choices. In the human brain, one approach to studying valuation has used rewarding stimuli to map out brain responses by varying the dimension or importance of the rewards.

However, theoretical models have taught us that value computations are complex, and so reward probes alone can give only partial information about neural responses related to valuation.

It was successfully demonstrated that human behavior is not endlessly variable, but can be captured and quantified by testable laws. Modern neuroscience techniques can identify and link individual differences in decision-making behavior to differences in brain anatomy, brain responses, genetics, and so on.

In particular, modern neuroimaging techniques provide the means by which human brain responses can be monitored while subjects are engaged in economic-based behavioral tasks.

This methodology is employed to study well-quantified group behavioral scenarios in which monetary outcomes vary depending on how people cooperate, compete, or punish others.

Neuromarketing: Neural valuation

The goal of this work is centered on the idea of valuation, especially neural valuation. Valuation is a central concept in economics. In this domain, the value of goods must be put on a common scale in order to compare, contrast, and prioritize their value. In this context, the idea of a currency provides just such a common valuation scale.

Neuromarketing- Neural valuation and its connection
to decision-making

In the simplest terms, human decision making can be framed as an energetic problem that pits an organism’s investment for each choice against the immediate and long-term returns expected. This trade-off is a fundamental

one and has long acted as a selective constraint shaping the evolution of biological decision-making mechanisms.

Consequently, we should expect the mechanisms that estimate the value of decisions to be crafty and efficient.

Two supporting players lie behind every decision: representation and valuation.  
To make efficient choices, the brain must represent the available choices and calculate the differential value of each, including both near term and distal future rewards.

To get a more in depth analysis of reward valuation process, download this PDF file bellow.