eprintid: 1476094 rev_number: 24 eprint_status: archive userid: 608 dir: disk0/01/47/60/94 datestamp: 2016-03-03 16:02:38 lastmod: 2021-09-19 23:40:33 status_changed: 2016-03-03 16:02:38 type: article metadata_visibility: show creators_name: Schwartenbeck, P creators_name: FitzGerald, TH creators_name: Mathys, C creators_name: Dolan, R creators_name: Kronbichler, M creators_name: Friston, K title: Evidence for surprise minimization over value maximization in choice behavior ispublished: pub divisions: UCL divisions: B02 divisions: C07 divisions: D07 divisions: F83 note: This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ abstract: Classical economic models are predicated on the idea that the ultimate aim of choice is to maximize utility or reward. In contrast, an alternative perspective highlights the fact that adaptive behavior requires agents' to model their environment and minimize surprise about the states they frequent. We propose that choice behavior can be more accurately accounted for by surprise minimization compared to reward or utility maximization alone. Minimizing surprise makes a prediction at variance with expected utility models; namely, that in addition to attaining valuable states, agents attempt to maximize the entropy over outcomes and thus 'keep their options open'. We tested this prediction using a simple binary choice paradigm and show that human decision-making is better explained by surprise minimization compared to utility maximization. Furthermore, we replicated this entropy-seeking behavior in a control task with no explicit utilities. These findings highlight a limitation of purely economic motivations in explaining choice behavior and instead emphasize the importance of belief-based motivations. date: 2015-11-13 date_type: published official_url: http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/srep16575 oa_status: green full_text_type: pub pmcid: PMC4643240 language: eng primo: open primo_central: open_green article_type_text: Journal Article verified: verified_manual elements_id: 1078957 doi: 10.1038/srep16575 pii: srep16575 language_elements: eng lyricists_name: Dolan, Raymond lyricists_name: Fitzgerald, Thomas lyricists_name: Friston, Karl lyricists_name: Mathys, Christoph lyricists_name: Schwartenbeck, Philipp lyricists_id: RJDOL46 lyricists_id: TFITZ23 lyricists_id: KJFRI52 lyricists_id: CMATH85 lyricists_id: SCHWA70 actors_name: Barczynska, Patrycja actors_id: PBARC91 actors_role: owner full_text_status: public publication: Scientific Reports volume: 5 article_number: 16575 event_location: England issn: 2045-2322 citation: Schwartenbeck, P; FitzGerald, TH; Mathys, C; Dolan, R; Kronbichler, M; Friston, K; (2015) Evidence for surprise minimization over value maximization in choice behavior. Scientific Reports , 5 , Article 16575. 10.1038/srep16575 <https://doi.org/10.1038/srep16575>. Green open access document_url: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1476094/1/Evidence%20for%20surprise%20minimization%20over%20value%20maximization%20in%20choice%20behavior.pdf