Testing the reward prediction error hypothesis with an axiomatic model
Abstract
We test the reward prediction error (RPE)theory of dopaminergic function, based on a recent axiomatization by Caplin and Dean (Quarterly Journal of Economics, 123 (2008), 663–702). We show that measurements of human neural activity from the striatum, medial prefrontal cortex, amygdala, and posterior cingulate cortex satisfy these conditions.