Department of Neuroscience, Center for Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA.
J Exp Psychol Learn Mem Cogn. 2011 Mar;37(2):325-37. doi: 10.1037/a0021611.
This study investigated whether rhesus monkeys show evidence of metacognition in a reduced, visual oculomotor task that is particularly suitable for use in fMRI and electrophysiology. The 2-stage task involved punctate visual stimulation and saccadic eye movement responses. In each trial, monkeys made a decision and then made a bet. To earn maximum reward, they had to monitor their decision and use that information to bet advantageously. Two monkeys learned to base their bets on their decisions within a few weeks. We implemented an operational definition of metacognitive behavior that relied on trial-by-trial analyses and signal detection theory. Both monkeys exhibited metacognition according to these quantitative criteria. Neither external visual cues nor potential reaction time cues explained the betting behavior; the animals seemed to rely exclusively on internal traces of their decisions. We documented the learning process of one monkey. During a 10-session transition phase, betting switched from random to a decision-based strategy. The results reinforce previous findings of metacognitive ability in monkeys and may facilitate the neurophysiological investigation of metacognitive functions.
本研究旨在探讨猕猴在简化的视觉眼动任务中是否表现出元认知的证据，该任务特别适合用于 fMRI 和电生理学研究。该两阶段任务涉及点状视觉刺激和眼跳反应。在每次试验中，猕猴先做出决策，然后进行下注。为了获得最大奖励，它们必须监测自己的决策，并利用该信息进行有利的下注。两只猕猴在数周内学会了根据自己的决策进行下注。我们实施了一种元认知行为的操作定义，该定义依赖于逐次试验的分析和信号检测理论。两只猕猴都根据这些定量标准表现出了元认知。下注行为既不受外部视觉线索的影响，也不受潜在反应时间线索的影响；动物似乎只依赖于对自己决策的内部记忆痕迹。我们记录了一只猴子的学习过程。在 10 个会话的过渡阶段，下注从随机切换到基于决策的策略。研究结果强化了之前在猴子身上发现的元认知能力的发现，并可能有助于元认知功能的神经生理学研究。
