Evaluating consequences in decision-making: behavioral data and neural recordings from monkey premotor and prefrontal cortex (v2)

Goal-oriented interactions with the environment often require that actions are organized in a sequence to anticipate the consequences of each step in the complex decision-making process. Sometimes the ideal choice is not the most immediately convenient. In such cases, efficient results are obtained by selecting an immediate loss against the guarantee of a greater future gain. The goal of the present experiment was to study how the evaluation of the consequence on a multi-step process is reflected in the brain activity of areas known to be involved in decision-making. We trained one macaque monkey (9.5 – 10.5 kg, 16 years) in performing a task consisting of two successive trials (trial 1 and trial 2) combined in one episode, in which the amount of reward received in trial 2 was influenced by the choice in trial 1. Neuronal activity was simultaneously recorded by two multielectrode arrays (n = 96 channels) implanted in the dorsal premotor cortex and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. We share behavioral (arm reaction times, performance, pupillometry changes, and eye positions) and neural data (offline processed unit activity; spike series). This dataset can be utilised to explore the various neurobehavioral correlates of complex choice-based decision-making, while the choices are governed by non-immediate futuristic outcomes. The simultaneous recording from two brain areas further broadens the horizon in exploring the inter-area neuronal coupling during this type of decision-making.