MSc project, ION, 2012/2013
How Serotonin Influences Moral Behavior
Supervisors: Dr Molly Crockett, Prof Peter Dayan, Prof Ray Dolan.
Location: Functional Imaging Laboratory, 12 Queen Square.
Aims and background
The neurotransmitter serotonin has long been implicated in social behavior. In
particular, impaired serotonin function is associated with antisocial behavior and
aggression. Current theories of serotonin function suggest that serotonin plays a
critical role in inhibiting behaviors that are expected to lead to aversive outcomes.
Since harmful or aggressive actions can lead to aversive outcomes, serotonin may
regulate antisocial behavior by promoting behavioral control in light of aversive social
predictions. Supporting this hypothesis, our recent study showed that enhancing
serotonin function in humans reduced aggressive behavior, and at the same time
made harms more salient in moral judgment.
In the current project, we seek to understand the role of serotonin in moral
judgment and behavior within the context of its influence on reinforcement learning.
Specifically, people find it remarkably difficult to prevent bad outcomes by making an
active response. Meanwhile, they find it much easier to avoid bad outcomes by
making a passive response. Studies suggest this learning bias may be stronger when
serotonin levels are artificially high; in other words, serotonin promotes passive
responding to avoid bad outcomes. Thus, the influence of serotonin manipulations on
moral judgment and behavior may critically depend on whether morally charged
actions are active or passive. In the current project, we will explicitly test this
hypothesis using a novel behavioral task in which subjects make active or passive
decisions that result in harmful consequences (monetary losses and mild electric
shocks) to another person. We predict that enhancing serotonin function (using the
selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor citalopram) will enhance aversion to harm, as in
our previous studies, but only for active responses. Such findings may raise
important questions about the feasibility of ‘moral enhancement’.
Methods and what it will involve for you
Initially you will be involved with developing and piloting the behavioral task. This
task will form the basis for a pharmacological study in healthy volunteers. You will
have the opportunity to learn task development in Cogent and statistical analysis of
behavioral data. Preferred applicants will have strong conceptual knowledge about
statistical analysis and basic programming/scripting skills (matlab, bash, python, R).
Depending on the level of commitment you may also be involved with fMRI studies.
Your role will be:
1. Assist with developing and programming the behavioral task.
2. Recruit healthy volunteers to participate in a pilot study to test the behavioral
task (using our department website etc.).
3. Conduct the pharmacological experiment, collect and store the behavioural
data. You will initially be supervised until you can carry on independently.
4. You will be encouraged, but are not required, to take an active role in data
analysis. If interested, the researchers would be happy to provide help and
guidance in this respect.
If you are interested, please send an email and a copy of your CV to:
Dr Molly Crockett, mollycrockett@gmail.com
Prof Ray Dolan, r.dolan@ucl.ac.uk