Consumer Neuroscience investigated via functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging.

Human decision-making is driven by subjective values assigned to alternative choice options, and these valuations are based on reward cues. This study investigates the extent to which culturally defined but highly meaningful reward cues incidentally affect generic economic decisions. Participants are subliminally presented with a widely recognized brand logo as a reward cue just before they make unrelated economic choices. Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging is used to identify brain regions in which the encoding of the subjective value of the choice options is directly modulated by the cue.