Human fronto–mesolimbic networks guide decisions about charitable donation
Edited by Marcus E. Raichle, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, and approved September 7, 2006
Abstract
Humans often sacrifice material benefits to endorse or to oppose societal causes based on moral beliefs. Charitable donation behavior, which has been the target of recent experimental economics studies, is an outstanding contemporary manifestation of this ability. Yet the neural bases of this unique aspect of human altruism, which extends beyond interpersonal interactions, remain obscure. In this article, we use functional magnetic resonance imaging while participants anonymously donated to or opposed real charitable organizations related to major societal causes. We show that the mesolimbic reward system is engaged by donations in the same way as when monetary rewards are obtained. Furthermore, medial orbitofrontal–subgenual and lateral orbitofrontal areas, which also play key roles in more primitive mechanisms of social attachment and aversion, specifically mediate decisions to donate or to oppose societal causes. Remarkably, more anterior sectors of the prefrontal cortex are distinctively recruited when altruistic choices prevail over selfish material interests.
Data Availability
Data deposition: The neuroimaging data have been deposited with the fMRI Data Center, www.fmridc.org (accession no. 2–2006–122A7).
Acknowledgments
We thank Jerzy Bodurka for helping with optimization of fMRI data acquisition; Eric Wassermann for performing the neurological exams; and Marilia Duffles, Mirella Lopez Paiva, Edward Huey, and Walter Sinnott-Armstrong for their insightful comments on the manuscript. We are also thankful to Nicolas Lizop, Devon Shook, and Theron Pummer for their help with data collection. This research was supported by the Intramural Research Program of the National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, Cognitive Neuroscience Section and by LABS–D’Or Hospital Network and Programa de Apoio a Núcleos de Excelência–Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Technológico (J.M.).
Supporting Information
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© 2006 by The National Academy of Sciences of the USA.
Data Availability
Data deposition: The neuroimaging data have been deposited with the fMRI Data Center, www.fmridc.org (accession no. 2–2006–122A7).
Submission history
Received: May 31, 2006
Published online: October 17, 2006
Published in issue: October 17, 2006
Keywords
Acknowledgments
We thank Jerzy Bodurka for helping with optimization of fMRI data acquisition; Eric Wassermann for performing the neurological exams; and Marilia Duffles, Mirella Lopez Paiva, Edward Huey, and Walter Sinnott-Armstrong for their insightful comments on the manuscript. We are also thankful to Nicolas Lizop, Devon Shook, and Theron Pummer for their help with data collection. This research was supported by the Intramural Research Program of the National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, Cognitive Neuroscience Section and by LABS–D’Or Hospital Network and Programa de Apoio a Núcleos de Excelência–Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Technológico (J.M.).
Notes
This article is a PNAS direct submission.
Authors
Competing Interests
The authors declare no conflict of interest.
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