This volume offers a range of perspectives on a simple problem: How does the brain choose efficiently and adaptively among options to ensure coherent, goal-directed behavior? The contributors, from fields as varied as anatomy, psychology, learning theory, neuroimaging, neurophysiology, behavioral economics, and computational modeling, present an overview of key approaches in the study of cognitive control and decision making. The book not only presents a survey of cutting-edge research on the topic, it also provides a handbook useful to psychologists, biologists, economists, and neuroscientists alike.

The contributors consider such topics as the anatomical and physiological basis of control, examining core components of the control system, including contributions of the cerebral cortex, the ways in which subcortical brain regions underpin the control functions of the cortex, and neurotransmitter systems; variations in control seen in the development from adolescence to adulthood, in healthy adults, and in patient populations; recent developments in computational approaches, including reinforcement learning; and overarching trends in the current literature, including neuroeconomics, social decision making, and model-based approaches to data from neuroimaging and electrophysiology.